On the final day of the legislative session, the Alabama House did not take up SB 319, which would have authorized a statewide referendum on a lottery, casinos and sports betting. The bill had passed the Senate but House lawmakers couldn’t agree on the number and location of casinos and how to direct the state’s share of gaming revenue.
Governor Kay Ivey, a supporter of the bill, said she’d call a special session only if legislators can reach an agreement, but that hasn’t happened for decades. Ivey spokeswoman Gina Maiola said, “As she has said, we would need a plan and an agreement on that plan for her to consider that.”
House Speaker Mac McCutcheon said House leaders chose not to bring up the bill for debate on the final, busy legislative day due to fundamental differences that could not be resolved in a day.
The bill’s sponsors, state Senator Jim McClendon, stated, “I’m quite disappointed,” noting the Senate worked hard to reach a compromise, only to see the measure fall apart in the House. “It was a lot of work, but so much for that this session,” he said.
The Senate bill would have allowed nine casinos, including three owned by the Poarch Band of Creek Indians. Alabama’s five existing racetracks would have been allowed to upgrade to full-fledged Class III casinos,
However, other sites that offer electronic bingo games also lobbied to be included, noting jobs would be lost in poor counties if their facilities were closed. “You can’t just talk about a lottery without all of these other people getting into the discussion,” McCutcheon said.
Analysts estimated the plan would generate $710 million in extra taxes, which could expand high-speed internet access and fund education and health care. Democrats wanted to include language stating gambling revenue would go toward Medicaid expansion.
House Minority Leader Anthony Daniels said, “That has been our priority for the last 10 years. Expanding Medicaid is to help small businesses that can’t afford to offer health insurance to their employees. It’s the working poor, the people working two or three jobs. Those are the people that will qualify.”
However, Senate Majority Leader Clay Scofield said he believed Senate Republicans would oppose that language, due to cost. “I think the Senate Republicans would have a problem with that,” he said.
May 6 was the day it became clear the legislation wouldn’t pass, when Republicans attempted to introduce a lottery only version of the bill, minus casinos. Observers said that’s when the debate turned into a battle, with Democrats accusing Republicans of not including them in discussions. The measure had so many moving parts, which was supposed to increase its chances, but instead that gave lawmakers more issues to disagree on.
