Northam bill change would outlaw skill gaming machines
(The Center Square) – Gov. Ralph Northam is seeking to expressly prohibit “games of skill” in an amendment he proposed to House- and Senate-passed gambling regulation legislation.
Games of skill, which have been operating in a legal gray area within restaurants, convenience stores, truck stops and other locations, would need to be halted under the amended language to House Bill 2168. The version that passed the General Assembly did not expressly permit these games to continue, but the vague language may have inadvertently allowed them to operate for at least another year.
Earlier during the legislative session, lawmakers voted against legislation that would have expressly permitted these games to continue. The amended language to crack down on skill games is expected to pass the General Assembly.
The machines help boost revenue for the operating companies and for businesses that have installed the machines. However, they will also create competition with larger casinos, which will be popping up in the commonwealth after the General Assembly voted to allow them in certain localities.
Some analysts believe the prohibition is intended to wipe out the competition to benefit casinos.
“This is just about protecting the lottery monopoly,” Stephen Haner, a senior fellow for state and local tax policy at the Thomas Jefferson Institute for Public Policy, told The Center Square. “If they think the unlicensed games won’t return, they’ve started smoking dope already.”
The prohibition on skill games was initially planned for last year, but the governor and the General Assembly postponed it until this year to prevent additional business losses during the COVID-19 pandemic and to boost education funding. $95 million in funding generated from these machines were used to offset formulaic losses in education funding caused by the pandemic.
In addition to prohibiting skill games, the legislation would allow localities and the attorney general to crack down on gambling in unregulated facilities. Any person involved in conducting or supervising gambling in an unregulated location would be subject to a $25,000 civil fine.
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