The Florida Senate recently passed in a 32-6 vote, without debate, SB 8 which would allow slot machines at dog and horse racetracks in eight counties outside of South Florida where local voters have approved referendums. It also would let the Seminole Tribe offer craps and roulette at its casinos and permit South Florida racetracks to add blackjack. In addition, it would pave the way for an additional casino in Broward and Miami-Dade counties. If approved, the Senate plan would generate 5 million in revenue in the first year and 0 million annually after that, said the bill’s sponsor, state Senator Bill Galvano.
Currently the Seminole Tribe operates seven casinos, including Hard Rock hotels and casinos in Tampa and Hollywood. The tribe has the exclusive rights to offer blackjack in exchange for giving the state a portion of its revenue, nearly $2 billion since 2010. Also, it would allow parimutuel racinos in Miami-Dade and Broward, which already have slot machines, to add a limited number of blackjack tables.
Galvano said the legislation would bring stability to the state’s gambling market and address ongoing lawsuits. In one pending case, the Florida Supreme Court could allow dog and horse tracks to add slots in the eight counties where voters approved them: Brevard, Duval, Gadsden, Lee, Hamilton, Palm Beach, St. Lucie and Washington. In another legal battle, after a provision of the Seminole compact granting the tribe exclusive blackjack rights expired in 2015, the state said the tribe must stop offering the games; the tribe sued and won the first round.
Galvano said, “Everybody realizes that inaction is not working. We have this ambiguous unpredictable state of flux out there.”
The House is expected to vote soon on its bill, PCB TGC 17-01, that would freeze all gambling in the state at its current level for another 20 years. It would reenact the current gaming compact with the Seminole Tribe, allowing it exclusive rights to slots outside Miami-Dade and Broward counties and blackjack at their south Florida casinos, in exchange for $3 billion in payments to the state over seven years. Unlike the Senate, the House bill would ban parimutuels from adding slot machines in the eight counties where voters have authorized the games —— and would reverse court rulings that have allowed parimutuels to operate designated-player games, popular alternatives to poker in many card rooms throughout the state.
With just a few weeks remaining in the legislative session, a compromise between the Senate and House bills may be impossible. “It’s a heavy, heavy lift,” said House Speaker Richard Corcoran. But, Galvano noted, “It’s the first time we’ve had a gaming bill on the floor since 2010. Something’s happening.” After the House passes its bill, a conference committee will be appointed to work out the differences.
In the meantime the Seminole tribe announced it opposes both bills. Tribal officials told legislators both measures require higher payments from the tribe without providing any additional value, which could violate federal Indian gaming laws.
The tribe recently gained some leverage over the legislature due to a recent decision by Circuit Judge John Cooper that slot machine look-alikes found in bars across the state are not illegal gambling devices. In a letter to legislative leaders, Tribal Chairman Marcellus Osceola warned these so-called “pre-reveal” games were “an expansion of gaming” and a “serious violation” of the compact, which guarantees the tribe exclusive rights to slots outside of South Florida. Osceola said the games have been considered gambling devices in other states and said if Florida continues to allow the machines, the tribe could stop revenue sharing which has totaled $40 million for January and February.
The tribe and state regulators have asked the judge to reconsider his decision. According to the court filing, if lawmakers don’t close the loophole allowing the games by the end of the session, the state could face “massive consequences costing the Tribe and the State to lose multi-billions of dollars.”
Parimutuels, convenience stores and gaming centers across the state have indicated they might want to install the pre-reveal games which currently do not require a gaming license.
Earlier, another court case struck a blow to the compact and its promised $250 million in total revenues when U.S. District Court Judge Robert Hinkle ruled so-called “designated player” card games that were approved by the state at parimutuel facilities violated a provision in the compact that gave the Seminole Tribe the exclusive right to operate blackjack and other banked card games at its casinos in Miami-Dade and Broward counties.
Since October 2015, when the blackjack provisions of the current compact expired, the tribe has continued to make monthly payments to the state. However, the state is keeping the funds in escrow until the compact is renewed or the legislature approves a new one.
Galvano said, “We need to get this together and resolve these things going forward or we’ll have no revenue and there’ll be gaming wherever someone has made a good argument that it should exist.”
In addition, a bill that “will clarify that fantasy sports is not gambling” unanimously passed the House Tourism and Gaming Control Subcommittee. It’s sponsored by state Rep. Jason Brodeur, who said, “It is almost a pastime for a significant number of Floridians, so I don’t think that we need government to regulate it. It’s almost self-regulating.”
The fantasy sports bill could be included in negotiations in the conference committee.
