Filling up your car’s gas tank while trying to fill up your pockets in slot play could soon be illegal in Missouri, if a state lawmaker gets his way. Rep. Rasheen Aldridge, D-St. Louis, is sponsoring a bill to go after gas stations, markets and convenience stores in the state that operate illegal slot machines.
Aldridge and his fellow legislators will return to work in January, and he said he would see if he could garner support among his colleagues.
He told the St. Louis Dispatch last week that he seeks revocation of liquor licenses to those who don’t comply. He also wants to ban those guilty of illegal machines from being unable to get a license if video gaming is legalized in the future.
“We need to hold these stores accountable,” Aldridge said. “We need to have enforcement on them. It is so inappropriate and disgusting.”
Aldridge claimed the problem is widespread in his district. He also said minors are going into stores and gaining access to the unregulated machines.
“It’s not helpful to communities that look like mine,” Aldridge said.
The Missouri Lottery estimates there are approximately 14,000 of the illegal machines.
The owners of the machines, however, dispute that they are illegal. They claim the devices have a feature telling players if they will win the next game.
The machines have plenty of detractors. The Lottery has lobbied lawmakers to ban the machines. They claim that the machines are taking away money that could be spent on lottery tickets.
Casino owners have also said the machines hurt their businesses with people playing them rather than the machines in the casino. Officials from both the Lottery and the casinos said state programs are losing out in taxable income both entities raise from their forms of wagering.
Aldridge might have an uphill battle to get legislation passed. The machines are represented by powerful lobbyists, who so far have been successful in keeping legislation like Aldridge’s out.
It is estimated that a half-million dollars have been raised through a political action committee and donated to lawmakers. One of those is Andrew Bailey, who is the new attorney general.
Aldridge has put a provision in his bill that would require the attorney general to assist a prosecutor in criminal action against store operators.
The goal for Aldridge is to implement a legalized system for the machines that is regulated and pays taxes.
“There’s a place for those, but not in those convenience stores,” Aldridge told the Dispatch. “These funds aren’t going back into the community.”
