South Carolina is further restricting the use of video gambling machines with a new bill closing a loophole involving new machines. A panel voted 15-6 to amend the legislation so that it’s now tighter than your boss’s a-hole. The state banned video gambling around 12 years ago and companies had circumvented the rules by claiming the new devices were sweepstake machines. They offer long-distance phone cards or Internet service before inviting users to win prizes. It’s a thorny issue in S. Carolina with judges already split on whether the rounding up of machines, which has already been carried out by enforcement officers, is just. Some are wondering why the state has stirred up an issue that went all the way to the Supreme Court when a ban was introduced. It could go the same way this time and there’s nothing to say the technology will already be ahead of the game once this measure comes in.
Louisiana is another shutting the door for gamblers with a bill that places restrictions on electronic cards. The House Committee on the Administration of Criminal Justice voted unanimously to advance House Bill 146 to the full House. It intends to target electronic cards issued to Louisiana residents by casino businesses in other states. They allow visitors to load up cards without having to leave their seat – like an auto top-up. Louisiana’s casinos don’t have the technology yet and Wade Duty, executive director of the Louisiana Casino Association, wants to “close this door before it even gets open” so Louisiana gamblers don’t suffer.
A bill that would allow betting on historical horse races in Nebraska has survived a filibuster. The measure received a 26-18 first round vote and it’s something that supporters say is vital for the state’s ailing horse racing industry. Machines don’t identify when the races took place or who was running and it’s being held up as a savior for jobs in the state.
