April 25, 2024 3 min read

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Lawmakers in Alabama Continue Gambling Proposal Debate

Ahead of the end of the legislative session, Sen. Garlan Gudger, who is a part of the Senate Conference Committee, remained optimistic about the future of the gambling bill

A proposal calling for the expansion of gambling activities across Alabama has been gaining traction recently. House Bill 151 (HB 151) calls for the legalization of sports betting, expansion of gambling and the establishment of a lottery.

While both Democrat and Republican lawmakers showed support for the proposal, there are still points on which they strongly disagree. Earlier this month, the gambling bill advanced to the Senate Conference Committee, where it currently seeks approval.

Previously, the House version of the bill included texts about casino gambling, sports betting and a lottery. However, after the Senate revised the proposal, much of the text has changed, leaving the lottery as the primary focus for the gambling expansion in Alabama.

Lawmakers also disagreed about the date which may be used for the residents’ vote for or against the proposal. Provided that the bill gains further traction, it would require approval from Alabama voters. While the House proposed the Election Day in November, the Senate wanted to use September 10 as the date for that vote.

The debate on the proposal is currently ongoing with the Senate Conference Committee and according to a report by CBS42, Democrats, as well as Republicans from both chambers are holding meetings behind closed doors. In the meantime, the deadline for the legislative session is approaching. With less than a week left, Alabama lawmakers will need to quickly decide the future of the gambling bill.

While currently, the state offers casino gambling, sports betting is not yet legal. All of Alabama’s neighbors, including Tennessee, Mississippi and Florida offer sports betting with the single exception being Georgia. Supporters of the gambling expansion say that sports betting, lottery and casino gambling will help generate additional tax revenue.

Sen. Gudger, Optimistic about a Vote on the Gambling Bill

The Senate Conference Committee includes Sen. Greg Albritton, Sen. Garlan Gudger, as well as Senate Minority Leader Bobby Singleton. According to Gudger, one of the important points in the ongoing discussion is where the gambling tax revenue would go.

Speaking about the hot topic, the politician said: “Where the money is going, right? Everybody wants to know where the money is going.” He questioned whether the additional funds would contribute toward mental health programs or an education lottery, saying that there are literally “a thousand other places that it could go.”

Gudger added that as a supporter of mental health programs, he would like to see such initiatives benefit from additional funding. This otherwise means that additional tax revenue would need to be allocated to the general fund.

Sen. Gudger spoke about the potential of the bill gaining further traction, explaining that he is optimistic about a vote on the proposal before the end of the legislative session.

Journalist

Jerome is a welcome new addition to the Gambling News team, bringing years of journalistic experience within the iGaming sector. His interest in the industry begun after he graduated from college where he played in regular local poker tournaments which eventually lead to exposure towards the growing popularity of online poker and casino rooms. Jerome now puts all the knowledge he's accrued to fuel his passion for journalism, providing our team with the latest scoops online.

1 Comment

  • Rick Skeen
    April 25, 2024 at 5:37 pm

    The amount of reported revenue derived from casino gambling is totally wrong. The House revenue projection of up to $492 M from 7 new licensed casinos would require these casinos to take in over $2 B from players (based on the 24 percent tax proposed in the House legislation.). This amount is more than the $1.6 B gross revenue from the 12 large, well established, casinos on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. The revenue projections for casino gambling are ridiculously high. The legislature better start worrying about how much revenue they plan to get rather than how they are going to spend it. They Senate bill is a little better than the House bill, but the revenue from a Poach Creek tribal compact will be much less than has been reported. If Alabama voters are going to vote on casino gambling, they should demand their legislators give a detailed accounting of how they arrived at their rosy revenue projections.

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