The legislative tide in Pennsylvania began to turn against the proliferation of unregulated gaming machines that purport to be “skill games,” as several prominent lawmakers, including the most powerful state senators and the speaker of the House, announce they are returning tens of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions and lobbying dollars to the manufacturers of those games, the most prominent being Georgia-based Pace-O-Matic.
The move gave new hope to opponents of the games, which number more than 20,000 across the state and are active in locations ranging from gas stations and convenience stores to pizza parlors, mom-and-pop stores, and even laundromats.
The manufacturers argue that the slot-like machines are not gaming machines because they involve a simple decision, usually whether to wager again when shown the result of the next spin, by the player and therefore are governed by skill and not luck. Small operators of the game have said the additional revenue saved them in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Opponents have argued that the “skill” factor does not overrule the fact that people are wagering money and are paid in cash for winning results—and that many of the machines allow the player to override the skill decision to make play identical to slot play. They also argue that even if skill were involved, the games are not subject to scrutiny over fairness, license fees or taxes to benefit the local communities, making them unfair competition to regulated casino slot machines, and dangerous to communities in which they are located where anyone, even children, can play them.
The rejection of lobbying money from the skill-game industry also gives new hope to legislation that would explicitly ban the machines, currently up for debate in both chambers of the General Assembly.
“I’d like to see them banned,” state Senate President Pro Tempore Jack Corman said in an interview with USA Today. “At minimum, they should be regulated.” Corman said Pennsylvania offers a “healthy gaming environment” because it’s “heavily regulated and heavily taxed.”
Corman and Senate Majority Leader Kim Ward both returned campaign contributions from skill-game manufacturers, calling the games “illegal gambling.”
“The industry is paying a lot of money to keep the status quo,” Corman said. “I became concerned about the amount of money spreading around and returned it.” Corman said he was returning more than $27,000 in contributions. Ward’s office said he returned $16,500, and Senate Minority Leader Jay Costa returned $10,000. “I’m very much opposed to skill games,” Costa told the Ellwood City Ledger. “They are not regulated, and I do not think they are good for Pennsylvania.”
After USA Today published it initial story on skill-game money being returned, state House Speaker Bryan Cutler announced he is returning $35,000 in contributions from a skill-game political action committee headed by Pace-O-Matic.
“Skill games should be subject to the same state regulations as any other gaming system in the Commonwealth,” Cutler said in a statement to USA Today. “In fact, I have said previously they should face additional scrutiny because of their location in non-traditional gaming settings where children may be present and should be limited and regulated accordingly.”
Others returning money included Rep. Matt Bradford of Montgomery County ($16,000), House Majority Leader Kerry Benninghoff ($12,500), Senator Gene Law of Lycoming County ($11,000) and Senator Camera Bartolotta of Washington County ($10,500).
