Casino Table Game Legislation Moves Through Pennsylvania Senate

Table games in Pennsylvania casinos is the last thing that the struggling Atlantic City casino industry wants to see. On Thursday, however, the Senate in Pennsylvania passed legislation that would legalize table games at state casinos.

The legislation now moves to the House where it is expected to be revised. The House wants a higher tax on the table games than the Senate is calling for, and the two sides might have to meet in the middle.

The House has a Bill on the table that would mandate a thirty-four percent tax on table games. The Bill that just passed the Senate would only come with a fourteen percent tax. The Senate Bill also calls for a $15 million up front payment from casinos for the right to offer the table games.

There is not much time for the two branches of government to get on the same page. Lawmakers understand that the budget in the state is relying on the table games, and that may cause them to compromise more than they normally would.

"We have to act quickly on this," said Senator Jane Earll, "Because the new state budget includes about $200 million from table games revenue."

Another sticking point to the table game compromise will be the licensing fee. The casino have already paid a large licensing fee to operate their facilities and they do not want to pay more than $10 million more. Some lawmakers have proposed the fee be as high as $20 million.

October 10, 2009
Posted By Terry Goodwin
Staff Editor, CasinoGamblingWeb.com
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