In a 40-0 vote, the Virginia Senate has passed state Senator Tommy Norment’s bill that would fine gambling companies $50,000 for running ads with the slogan, “Virginia is for Bettors.” Norment said the phrase infringes on the highly recognized tourism slogan,” Virginia is for Lovers.”
The senator said he was motivated to file the legislation after hearing a radio ad while driving to Richmond. At a Senate Gambling Subcommittee hearing, he stated, “Frankly, it annoyed me. We’ve spent a lifetime trying to market ‘Virginia is for Lovers.’ I just felt it was trespassing on it.”
There was little discussion of the bill beyond state Senator John Bell, who joked, “Why don’t you say, ‘Virginia is for lovers who bet’?”
Casino operators and sports betting companies haven’t expressed opposition to the bill. However, there was some concern over Norment’s earlier draft of the bill, which would have banned gambling operators from even mentioning the name of the state. Norment said he revised the draft measure after it “got some of the people in the gaming industry all excited.”
The House of Delegates and Governor Glenn Youngkin still must approve Norment’s legislation.
The Virginia Tourism Corp. has registered “Virginia is for Lovers” as a federal trademark, along with “Virginia is for Wine Lovers,” “Virginia is for Craft Beer Lovers” and “Virginia is for Film Lovers.” The phrase was invented by Marshall Murdaugh when he was the head of the state tourism group.
