Pennsylvania House Health Committee expected to advance casino smoking ban bill
The Pennsylvania House Health Committee is expected to pass legislation Wednesday morning that would require casino floors in the state to be completely smoke-free.
The House Health Committee considers legislation affecting public health. For the second year in a row, Rep. Dan Frankel (D-Allegheny), chairman of the committee, introduced a bill to the General Assembly to amend the Pennsylvania Clean Indoor Air Act.
The Board of Health is scheduled to vote on Frankel's Bill 1657 at 9:45 a.m. Wednesday in Harrisburg. The bill would remove the casino exception from the Clean Indoor Air Act, which has allowed licensees to designate up to half of their gaming venues for indoor smoking since the act was passed in 2008.
Cigar and tobacco shops, private clubs and drinking establishments where food sales account for 20% or less of a bar's total sales are also exempt.
Smoking law likely to pass
Frankel's measure forcing players to smoke at the state's 17 brick-and-mortar casinos received positive approval from the Board of Health.
The longtime state representative recently said he was very confident the legislation would gain support in the 25-member body. Frankel might not put the smoking bill on the ballot if he wasn't sure he had the votes to advance it.
"We are enacting strong laws to protect our workers so they are not put in the impossible position of choosing between wages and their health," Frankel told a committee hearing last month on his Said after the invoice.
HB 1657 would not only lift the smoking ban at casinos, but also at drinking establishments and private clubs. The bill does not seek to repeal the cigar and tobacco lounge exemption.
“Fifteen years ago, this community took a giant step forward to ensure our workers were not forced to breathe toxic fumes – now is the time to get that done,” said Frankel, who introduced the law in September.
Casino Resistance
All but two of the 17 land-based casinos opening in Pennsylvania today allow indoor smoking. Exceptions include the Parx Casino in Bensalem, North Philadelphia, and the Parx Casino in Shippensburg, a so-called "mini-casino" or satellite venue.
Parx has decided to permanently ban indoor smoking during the pandemic. This certainly doesn't hurt the company's main asset, as the Bensalem Casino generates more gaming revenue each month than any other casino in the Commonwealth.
In September, Parx Casino reportedly won $31.5 million on its retail slot machines and $16 million at its table games, for a total winnings of $47.5 million. Wind Creek Bethlehem ranked second with $43.5 million.
The casino industry continues to claim that smoking bans are harmful to gaming by forcing players to take time out to smoke outside or in designated areas. During these pauses, some players may decide to call it a day. Responsible gaming advocates say that's a good thing.
Gaming industry veteran Richard Schütz is a consultant who has advised states on best regulatory practices. In September, he told the Frankel Health Board that the smoking areas were tantamount to "throwing out the welcome mat for problem gamblers".
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Source: www.casino.org
