Weeks after the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled that Skill Games are considered illegal gambling machines, legislators now have just 91 days to make a decision on how to regulate them.
If lawmakers do not create a framework by the October 13th deadline, Skill machines will become illegal across the commonwealth, and the governor says that state law enforcement is prepared to prevent illegal operation of those games.
Legislators on both sides of the aisle say the decision is much more than just a partisan issue, as there are many differing opinions on how to handle the regulation and taxation of the machines.
Now that a state budget is finished, legislators’ main focus, when they return for session in September, will be that looming deadline.
If legislators don’t meet that deadline, the tens of thousands of Skill machines across the commonwealth would become illegal and will likely be seized by authorities.
However, legislators say a decision on how to regulate Skill Games is much more nuanced than many people think.
“It is all over the board. And again, now we’ve been tasked with setting up regulations for this. So, it’s just not a matter of saying, ‘okay, they’re legal, you’re gonna pay $50 machine per month.’ Where are the machines gonna be allowed to be? Who’s gonna be allowed to play them? Do we keep them? Do we allow them in the grocery stores?”
“When you come down to it, there are many legislators, to be quite frank with you, who want these things gone. They were gambling, they were against the original gambling or against this 100%. They want these gone, Then there are those legislators that are in districts where they may have them in every AMVET, VFW, etc.”
And lawmakers say they are hearing from many lobbyists who also have a variety of opinions on the subject.
“Centre County now has a casino. You have casinos across the state. The casinos fall under a very strict law. They must pay taxes. They must have parking lots. They must have security. They must have all these things that they provide in order to be in business. So, they’re lobbying heavily,”n the other side, you have those individuals have been using this to keep their businesses open. And they’re saying that, ‘well, if you have to tax us, I don’t know if we have to pay tax on the money we’re making.’ I don’t know if we’re going to be able to make it.”
We also spoke with the Pennsylvania Taverns and Players Association, which says that their members have been going to local businesses across western Pennsylvania to let people know that their voices are the most important in the fight.
The organization has been hanging signs in many businesses so that owners and patrons know to contact their local lawmakers to share their thoughts on the issue.
“The only people that can make the best decision for Pennsylvania is our elected officials and so a lot of people are afraid to talk to the elected officials, a lot of people are afraid to reach out to them. If we can make that easy for them, whether it’s helping them just find a number, that’s one less step and they’re more likely to do so because at the end of the day, a lot of people are scared. Alot of people know what it’s going to do to their businesses or small organizations if they lose the ability to have Skill Games in their operation,”
Sprankle adds that he owns a local grocery store in Armstrong County and says that his business, and many others like it, could be greatly impacted by this decision.
“The key for the legislature is that we need to have the ability and a pathway that’s fair to be able to have Skill Games in our locations, continue operating, and then obviously a fair tax rate.”