MONTGOMERY – House Speaker Nathaniel Ledbetter hopes for Alabamians to actually vote on legalizing gambling may have been dashed by one vote in the Senate.
“I’m proud that the House and Senate conferees were successful in finding a compromise on this very important issue,” Ledbetter (R-Rainsville) said after a House-Senate Conference Committee voted 6-0 Tuesday and the House then passed two bills (HB151 and HB152) on the issue.
“The legislation passed in the House today cracks down on illegal gambling by implementing strong, clear and enforceable laws. It ensures all lottery proceeds, which are projected to exceed $300 million annually, benefit education and education only,” he said. “Most importantly, it allows the people of Alabama to vote on this issue for the first time in 25 years.
“The bottom line is there’s no telling how many roads Alabama has paved or how many children Alabama has sent to college in neighboring states. I’m hopeful that the Senate will follow the House’s lead and send this legislation to the governor.”
However, after an extended recess late Tuesday night, the Senate voted 20-15 in favor of the constitutional amendment to legalize gaming; but 21 votes are needed to pass the amendment. The House overwhelmingly approved the amendment earlier Tuesday by a 72-29 margin.
The move keeps the bill alive for senators to try again in the final four days of the 2024 legislative session, according to the Associated Press.
“We had a vote that ended up being a test vote,” Senate President Pro Tempore Greg Reed told reporters. “The bills are carried over, so the legislation is still available to us to continue to debate it.”
Rep. Andy Whitt (R-Madison) served on the conference committee and played an integral role in developing this legislation.
“I spent over a year traveling our state and getting a first-hand look at the impacts of illegal gaming in dozens of communities,” said Rep. Whitt. “It’s clear that Alabama has a massive problem, and I’m proud we were successful in finally moving forward a plan to address it. The conference committee’s discussions were highly productive and led to a compromise that I feel is a good deal for the state of Alabama.”
Some of its key features include:
- Authorizes the Alabama Education Lottery
- Authorizes electronic games of chance at seven locations taxed between 20-28%
- Requires the governor to enter compact negotiations with the Poarch Band of Creek Indians limited to in-person activities on lands held in trust prior to February 6, 2024
- Repeals local bingo Constitutional Amendments effective September 30, 2026, and gives the Alabama Gambling Commission authority over them until that repeal
- Prohibits future local gambling Constitutional Amendments
Some of its key features of the amendment include:
- The establishment of the Alabama Gambling Commission under the Senate passed-structure
- License structure for seven electronic gambling locations
- Must meet suitability
- 10-year license ranging from $15-30 million per license
- Option of a 15-year license with $100,000,000 capital investment
- Option of a 20-year license with $200,000,000 capital investment
- Tax rate of 24% for the first five years, then subject to adjustment by the Alabama Gambling Commission, not to exceed 28%
- All gambling proceeds for general fund related expenses subject to annual appropriation
- Senate-passed criminal law enhancements
- The Establishment of the Alabama Lottery Corporation under the House-passed structure
- All lottery proceeds will benefit education through last-dollar scholarships to two and 4-year higher education institutions, dual enrollment and retiree bonuses, subject to annual appropriation
HB151 and HB152 were carried by Rep. Chris Blackshear, who also served as chairman of the Conference Committee.
“This legislation’s entire journey serves as an example of how the process is supposed to work,” said Blackshear (R-Phenix City). “While the final legislation isn’t as comprehensive as I hoped, it still accomplishes our key goals of eliminating illegal gaming and giving the people of Alabama the opportunity to vote. We’ve had plenty of victories and setbacks, but we continued to work the issue and finally accomplished something that many before us never could. What I’m most proud of is that this legislation was developed by members and members only from start to finish. No outside entities had a seat at the table, and I truly believe that’s what led to our success.”
Rep. Sam Jones (D-Mobile) led the Minority Caucus on the issue.
“For far too long, the people of Alabama have been denied the right to vote on an issue that has been plaguing our state for decades,” he said. “I’m glad the House did its job today to help give Alabamians that right.
“If passed in the Senate and approved by voters on the ballot, we will finally be able to crack down on illegal gaming and divert our state’s resources away from Georgia, Mississippi, and other states, and allow us to instead invest those resources into the people of Alabama.”
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