It has been a trying week in Pennsylvania’s House of Representatives as it scrambled to introduce an updated law pertaining to online gambling, based on amendments made by the Senate. The decision on whether to pass the gambling expansion law is now once again up to members of the Senate, although it is generally agreed that nothing will budge on the matter until after the presidential elections in November.
The last minute scramble came after the state Supreme Court ruled that the portion of Pennsylvania’s Gambling Act that dealt with casinos’ taxation was unconstitutional. The ruling was made following a case brought against gambling authorities by one of the state’s 12 casinos, Mount Airy Casino Resort, which claimed that smaller casinos were suffering because the current taxation system favored larger casinos. Ruling in the casino’s favor, the Supreme Court gave the Legislature 120 days to find an effective solution to the problem.
Worried that this issue would prevent the Senate from passing the gambling expansion bill that will see the legalization and regulation of online gambling options and daily fantasy sports in Pennsylvania, the issue was brought back onto the table. On Tuesday last week, the Senate approved a temporary fix for the tax issue and sent the bill back to the House of Representatives. In a last minute meeting of the House, members voted in favor of the newly amended HB 1887 which includes a solution to the tax issue. As such, the bill has now returned to the Senate’s court and the future of online gambling in Pennsylvania now lies in its hands.
On November 16th, a Lame Duck session of the Senate will begin, and although there is still hope that online gambling could become a reality before the end of the year, analysts are not overly optimistic this will happen. Senate members have indicated that they will discuss the matter, however they are not keen to take a vote, especially under time restraints.
While a lack of Senate vote won’t mean the death of HB 1887, it is not the optimal position for the proposal to find itself in as it will need to be introduced again.
The Poker Players Alliance, representing over one million online poker players in the US, continues to urge lawmakers to pass the bill.
“When the majority of casinos want them and legislators are hearing from their constituents who want it, and they’re seeing the relative success of other states regulating it, it makes no sense to wait any longer,” noted executive director, John Pappas. “Why wait until tomorrow to enact good policy today?”
