Bill Prohibiting Gray Market Video Game Sales in Kentucky Unclear After Being Tabled by House
The sponsor of a bill aiming to outlaw "gray games" or "skill games" in Kentucky, Rep. Killian Timoney, shows no signs of surrender despite his proposal being tabled by fellow legislators just hours prior. In a bustling House session, a 42-35 vote, with 23 members abstaining, led to the shelving of House Bill 594. This came less than 24 hours after the House Licensing, Occupations, and Administrative Regulations Committee approved an amended version of the bill, sponsored by Timoney, by a 13-7 vote.
The bill might be revived, but it requires the call of 51 House members.
"We've got folks examining our options closely to figure out our next steps, and we'll proceed from there... I'm the kind of person who has to be told, 'Alright, it's over.' About 10 times before I stop," Timoney expressed.
With a limited timeframe to get the bill out of limbo and approved, allowing the Senate to vote on it, Timoney and supporters, including most Republican House leaders, are racing against the clock. The Kentucky General Assembly's session ends on March 30, and they will reconvene in Frankfort on Tuesday.
HB 594 targets skill-based games manufactured by companies like Pace-O-Matic and Prominent Technologies, making their operations in the state illegal. Offenders in "high-level roles" could face fines of up to $25,000 per unit.
"We're not dealing with big corporations," state Rep. Tom Smith, R-Corbin, clarified after Thursday's committee meeting. "We're talking about a mom-and-pop business off the beaten path. They're dependent on these games to pay their bills."
Smith voted to table the bill on Friday. However, there's debate over the machines' legality, and those opposed argue the manufacturers and retailers support regulation and taxation only because they now face a ban. Ban supporters also contend it would set a harmful precedent to legalize the machines after they've established themselves in the state.
Last year, a bill to ban the machines passed both legislative chambers, but the Senate amended the bill Timoney submitted, and the House did not reconsider it before the session ended. For this year's bill, Timoney collaborated with leaders in both chambers and various industries to craft a bill that would not ban games found at arcades, amusement parks, fairs, or establishments like Dave & Buster's and Chuck E. Cheese.
The bill's placement on the Friday agenda was quite unexpected, even for Timoney. After Thursday's committee meeting, he mentioned a floor vote would likely occur next week. Furthermore, HB 594 was not listed on the initial floor agenda following the committee meeting's conclusion.
State Rep. Steven Doan, R-Erlanger, proposed tabling the bill about 20 minutes into the floor discussion. The Kentucky Merchant Amusement Coalition (KY MAC), a trade group of businesses hosting gaming machines, praised the decision to postpone the bill.
KY MAC President Wes Jackson stated, "This bill has not been properly vetched and stands to endanger the livelihoods of many Kentucky small businesses." They commend Rep. Doan for his leadership on the floor, advocating for Kentucky small businesses by taxing and regulating skill games.
KY MAC also supports Doan's House Bill 525, which would formally legalize the games and set up a Kentucky Gaming Commission to oversee them. The bill would also limit most businesses to no more than five such machines, with truck stops installing as many as 10, and the state taxing gross profits at 6%.
A gaming commission, Doan said, would also have the power to seize the thousands of illegal machines present in businesses across the state.
"An outright ban of skilled games will only increase predatory gaming in our communities," he added.
Doan's bill faces two significant obstacles to even leave the House, much less the Senate. First, it requires a three-fifths majority this session because it's a revenue-generating bill in an off-budget year. Second, the bill has been assigned to a committee that's unlikely to take it up.
The recent vote to table a bill has left some congresspeople scratching their heads about the specifics. A simple majority is sufficient to enact a vote to table a bill this year, with a quarter of the 100-seat House being occupied by freshman lawmakers.
However, another intriguing aspect of the tabling vote is who abstained from voting. Out of the 23 lawmakers who remained silent, 15 were Democrats, which can be problematic as they only occupy 20 seats in the chamber. This means their influence over legislation, especially high-profile bills, is often minimal due to the GOP caucus typically having more than enough votes within its 80-member caucus.
It's speculated the Democratic caucus withheld their votes to negotiate changes in other upcoming bills. However, even if all 15 Democrats agreed to revive the bill, leadership would still require one Republican vote to reach the necessary 51 votes. Furthermore, there's no assurance that all the Democrats who abstained would support the bill.
The Chasm in Politics
As the vote numbers demonstrate, the contentious discussions surrounding gaming expansion over the past two years have created a divide among lawmakers. While the split is more pronounced on the GOP side,Democrats were not unilateral in their support for last year's bill.
This divisiveness springs from supporters of expanded gaming who believe a ban on gray games could hand significant power to racing interests. On the other hand, it has caused hesitation among those who are against gaming altogether, as state Rep. Chris Fugate, R-Chavies, mentioned.
"If I vote yes to eliminate the gray machines or remove them from Kentucky, then Churchill Downs gains a monopoly," said Fugate, also a preacher. "And what if they attempt, in future legislation, to introduce their machines in local stores if I vote no? Then, I would be promoting gambling as well."
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