The issue of online gambling in Pennsylvania made headlines again this week as it was revealed that there are still a few more opportunities for a bill to pass this year. HB 2150, which is currently sitting in the State Senate, could be readdressed when the Senate reconvenes for three days on September 26th. If nothing budges during those three days, there remains one last chance to pass the bill this year – in the six day frame in late October. Failure to pass the bill in both these time periods will not end the life of HB 2150, but it will mean that introducing it in 2017 will be more difficult and definitely more complicated.
The bipartisan HB 2150 passed the Pennsylvania House of Representatives and was a major consideration in the 2016-2017 state budget. The latest version of HB 2150 included a number of changes to the Gaming Act and took into consideration many suggestions and objections made by stakeholders in Pennsylvania’s gambling industry.
One of the sponsors of HB 2150, Rep. Rosita Youngblood, spoke about the importance of HB 2150 passing this year, especially since the budget was counting on the income that would be generated by the changes brought about by the bill. “If we do not pass something this fall, the taxpayers of this Commonwealth will be on the hook for that $100 million,” said Youngblood in a recent interview.
Commenting about the reasons why HB 2150 shouldn’t be delayed, Youngblood told OPR: “In January we will have a brand new legislature: new house members and maybe new senate members. We will definitely have two new chairmen of the House Gaming Oversight Committee. So we have to start the whole process from scratch. That lends to it additional delays in getting something passed, and with $100 million on the line that’s a risk we cannot take. Not to mention we will have a brand new attorney general, and it is not clear where they would stand on the legality of daily fantasy sports in the Commonwealth. There is a lot at stake by waiting.”
Youngblood has said in the past that, in her opinion, regulating igaming is the only way to truly rein in the black market, pointing out that many advocates outside the gaming world have called on the government to regulate the industry in a bid to address underage and problem gambling.
She said that while there were concerns that iGaming could have a negative impact on Pennsylvania’s “brick-and-mortar” casinos, by looking at the example of New Jersey, one is able to see that iGaming actually provided a synergy for their struggling casinos – as marketing and cross-promotion opportunities have grown attendance at their land casinos.
