Today is the last day of the 2013 state legislative session. So far, lawmakers have yet to iron out their differences on some of the remaining major pieces of legislation.
But, the Georgia House and Senate did give final passage to a measure giving oversight of video gaming to the Georgia Lottery Corporation. The House approved the bill [HB 487] by 162 to 6, while the Senate passed it by 39 to 12.
Audio of the news story as broadcast.
WABE’s Michelle Wirth has more.
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The measure requires video gaming machines to be hooked up to a centralized monitoring system.
Republican Rep. Matt Ramsey of Peachtree City says it will crack down on illegal gaming that’s taking place in the back rooms of gas stations in the state.
“This is not just illegal gambling, but these locations that have these practices in place they become a hub for criminal activity in these communities, and it’s time we finally give the people who are out there fighting this problem the tools to effectively address the problem.”
However, Ramsey says the bill does not expand gambling in Georgia.
“These machines are legal under state law. The problem is we don’t have a regulatory system in place to make sure they’re used legally and in compliance with our state laws. That’s exactly what we’re doing here, nothing more.”
But unlike the original bill…the final version gives local governments some power.
It lets them perform audits on the machines.
And if 15% of those machines are found to be in violation of the law during those audits, local communities can vote to ban them outright.
The bill now heads to the governor.
Michelle Wirth, WABE News, the State Capitol
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