Could talks about legalizing casino gambling in the state of Georgia be getting at least semi-serious? On Friday, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that two meetings have been scheduled for state lawmakers to discuss the possibility of a land-based casino industry. The meetings will be held by the Senate Preservation of the HOPE Scholarship Program Study Committee on September 14th and 15th and will be followed up by a report due December 1st.
Georgia currently has no casinos, though it is one of the few states that has some form of legalized online gambling. Along with Michigan, Minnesota, and Illinois, Georgia does permit the online sale of lottery tickets. Internet games like poker, though, are off-limits.
The hearings come on the back of reports that MGM Resorts International is interested in building a $1 billion casino resort in downtown Atlanta, a facility that would create an estimated 3,500 jobs.
One Georgia lawmaker, in particular, is gung-ho about the possibility of Las Vegas-style casinos in the state. State Representative Ron Stephens (R – Savannah), introduced HB 677 in March, a bill which would authorize the construction of up to six brick-and-mortar casinos in Georgia, as well as lay out all the relevant regulations and licensing policies.
“I’ve seen it, the conceptual plan at least,” Rep. Stephens told the Atlanta Business Chronicle about the MGM proposal. “It will compare with anything in Las Vegas.”
The Georgia lottery currently funds the HOPE Scholarship, a wildly successful program that helps students who attend in-state colleges and universities pay for their education. It also funds many pre-K programs around the state. Rep. Stephens’ bill would use casino tax dollars to help bolster the HOPE Scholarship. In a nutshell, students who earn a 3.0 grade point average in high school can earn money that will pay for much of the tuition at a public college or university in Georgia. For example, fall tuition at Georgia Tech is $4,906; a student earning the HOPE scholarship and taking 15 credit hours this semester would receive $3,495.
The HOPE Scholarship has been struggling financially in recent years, though, as more and more students have taken advantage of the deal. Starting this year, “academic rigor” requirements have been implemented which require high students to take advanced high school courses in order to qualify for a scholarship. These requirements will escalate through 2017. In 2011, the HOPE Scholarship stopped paying for books and mandatory fees.
“Right now, we’re funding HOPE on the backs of poor people,” Stephens told the Atlanta Business Chronicle. “These guys [MGM] are willing to put $250 million a year into HOPE.”
It is an uphill battle for Stephens’ legislation. If things go well with the Study Committee (and that’s a BIG “if”), the bill could be on the table for discussion in the House come next year. Governor Nathan Deal, though, is firmly against the expansion of gambling in Georgia.
