Virginia skill gaming ban will stay in effect pending court case
(The Center Square) – A Virginia law that prohibits gambling on skill games will remain in effect pending the outcome of a lawsuit, a judge decided.
Games of skill provide about $130 million in tax revenue annually and were used to offset formulaic funding losses for public schools. They also provide revenue for small businesses.
Business owners sought an immediate injunction to temporarily halt the enforcement of the law, citing irreparable harm if the ban remains in place. However, the judge denied the motion and ruled plaintiffs did not prove there would be irreparable harm, the injunction would be in the public interest or they would likely succeed on the merits of the case. The law went into effect July 1.
Games of skill are used throughout the commonwealth, often in truck stops, restaurants and convenience stores. Six business owners in Norfolk and Virginia Beach sued the state over the prohibition, claiming it violated the Virginia Human Rights Act. According to the plaintiffs, the stores are disproportionately operated by religious and ethnic minorities who will be barred from operating the games when horse racing venues will be allowed to operate similar games. The act prohibits discrimination on protected classes, such as sex, race, religion and national origin.
The judge the plaintiffs were unlikely to succeed on the merits because lawsuits regarding the Virginia Human Rights Act must show that a “person” took a discriminatory action, but that plaintiffs failed to prove the commonwealth fits the definition of a person.
Other arguments cited in the lawsuit included irreparable harm and public interest. The plaintiffs argued that skill games revenue were necessary to keep some businesses operating during the COVID-19 pandemic and that skill games help certain businesses operate in locations that are hard to access food.
However, the judge ruled against both of these claims. The judge ruled most COVID-19 pandemic restrictions have ended and the plaintiffs failed to prove that skill games would be necessary to keep these businesses operating or necessary to provide food in areas in which food is difficult to access.
Attorney Mike Joynes and Del. Steve Heretick, D-Portsmouth, are representing the businesses in the lawsuit.
Sen. Bill Stanley, R-Glade Hill, also filed a separate lawsuit to halt the skill games ban on behalf of Hermie Sadler, a Virginia small business owner and former NASCAR driver. The lawsuit argues the law provides discriminatory-based content restrictions.
The legislation to prohibit skills gaming came shortly after the commonwealth approved the construction of several casinos in the state. Some of the bill’s opponents claimed lawmakers supported a ban to cut back on competition for the casinos.
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