House Bill 271 passed but still needs Senate approval

Pennsylvania keeps pushing for VGTs legalization

The decision seeks to solve the state current budget crisis by collecting between USD 300M to USD 500M per year allowing video gambling in bars and taverns.
2017-08-14
Reading time 47 seg
The decision seeks to solve the state current budget crisis by collecting between USD 300M to USD 500M per year allowing video gambling in bars and taverns.

The measures is being sponsored by state Rep. Stephen Barrar and Jack’s Tavern owner Jerry McArdle, who is also a county delegate to the Pennsylvania State Tavern Association.

“We've just met a lot of resistance by many senators who are beholden to the casinos in Pennsylvania ... If it wasn’t for the casinos in Pennsylvania, we would have these VGTs,” said McArdle in report published by the Daily Times News.

However, opponents of the bill assured the new measures will have a negative impact by allowing casino industry cannibalization.

“The legalization of VGTs will jeopardize the $1.4 billion in tax revenues for the state, the jobs of the 18,000 people working in Pennsylvania casinos and negatively impact our communities by flooding our communities with nearly 40,000 mini-casinos,” Mike Barley, spokesman for Pennsylvanians for Responsible Government.

According to Senator Tom Killion, the state is already "saturated with gaming". He said Pennsylvania needs a comprehensive gaming policy debate to determine if further expansion of gaming is the right thing to do, before approving the bill.

Leave your comment
Subscribe to our newsletter
Enter your email to receive the latest news
By entering your email address, you agree to Yogonet's Condiciones de uso and Privacy Policies. You understand Yogonet may use your address to send updates and marketing emails. Use the Unsubscribe link in those emails to opt out at any time.
Unsubscribe
EVENTS CALENDAR