Pennsylvania State Representative John Payne, one of the champions of online poker in the state legislature and sponsor of HB 649, a bill which would legalize and regulate online poker, said recently that he believed a re-vote on the issue would be coming soon. In late May, the House rejected a pair of amendments to the bill mainly because of a clerical error that caused confusion about what the vote was actually for. A future re-vote was requested and granted. It turns out that Payne was right, but not specifically about his bill.
Last week, A8734, an amendment to HB 2150, was passed by the House by a sizable 115 to 80 vote. The amendment approves significant expansion of gambling in the Commonwealth, including the legalization of online poker. Payne, as one would expect, gave it a “yea” vote. The bill still needs to be approved by the Appropriations Committee, but assuming there aren’t any unexpected financial issues, one would think it will. At that point, the overarching bill goes back to the House for a floor vote.
The online poker part of the amendment isn’t revolutionary, containing all the consumer protections we would expect from a solid bill. Pennsylvania’s brick and mortar casinos – there are twelve of them – will be permitted to apply for a license, which will cost $8 million. Online poker operators or software providers that are not casinos can still get in the game, but like in neighboring New Jersey, they will have to partner with an established casino. The licensing fee will be lower for those companies.
The state will take 14 percent in gaming revenues in taxes, while another 2 percent will go to localities for use in grant programs.
What likely got A8734 over the hump was the elimination of a piece that would have permitted widespread expansion of video gaming terminals, or VGTs (think video slots and the like). One amendment would have allowed for VGTs in thousands of small venues across the state, like taverns and social clubs, but many lawmakers were averse to putting gaming machines within minutes of most people in the state. Then again, online gambling allows everybody to participate from home, so one would think that VGTs wouldn’t be that big of a deal. What it probably boiled down to was the fear of cannibalizing the brick and mortar casinos. All but one of the casinos was against VGT expansion (the lone supporter actually owns a VGT company) and many lawmakers were likely influenced by their lobbying.
There will still be some VGTs in the state. Airports will be permitted to have slot machines, as well as gambling tablets in lounges. The state’s largest airport, Philadelphia, will have to pay a $5 million licensing fee, Pittsburgh will be charged $2.5 million, and the other, smaller airports, will have to pay $1 million each for the privilege.
If the online gambling is going to get approved, it will have to happen this week, as the state budget is due by June 30th. The bill’s page on the House of Representatives website shows no activity since it was sent to Appropriations. If it passes Appropriations and the House, it will still have to move through the Senate quickly.
