Ga Casino Bill
Two bills have been put forward in Georgia that could pave the way for casinos and racing in the state. They join a bill on sports betting, Visit myFOCUS to see your saved articles and the topics you follow, and to update your profile. Georgia General Assembly, is one of the largest state legislatures in the nation. The General Assembly consists of two chambers, the House of Representatives and the Senate.
- Ron Stephens, R-Savannah filed House Resolution 30 would give Georgia residents the power to vote on whether casinos will be allowed in the state.
- Georgia lawmakers have currently proposed bills legalizing sports betting, casinos, and Horse racing.
- Sen. Brandon Beach proposed SB 30 which would create a Georgia Horse Racing Commission that would regulate legal pari-mutuel horse racing in the state.
ATLANTA – New ways to gamble could be on the horizon in Georgia as both the Georgia House of Representatives and Senate have proposed bills that would bring casinos and racetracks to the Peach State.
This isn’t the first-time either legislative chamber has pushed some forms of legal gambling in Georgia this year as Ron Stephens, R-Savannah has already proposed HB 86 in mid-January would legalize online/mobile sports betting.
Sports betting does have an easier path to legalization in Georgia than horse racing or casinos because it doesn’t require a constitutional amendment.
House Resolution 30 Would Allow Casinos In Georgia
Stephens, R-Savannah has been busy during the legislative sessions as he also introduced House Resolution 30 to legislation in a move that would give Georgia voters a say in whether casinos should be allowed to operate in the state on the upcoming ballot.
The bill also featured bipartisan support as four of the five co-authors of the bill are in the Democratic Party.
Co-Authors of HR 30
- (R-32) Alan Powell
- (D-135) Calvin Smyre
- (D-168) Al Williams
- (D-57) Stacey Evans
- (D-88) Billy Mitchell
HR 30 would be Georgia’s first step in allowing casinos to operate in the state and would help the Peach State government make up for any revenue lost due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Only destination resort facilities in Georgia are going to be able to receive licenses under the current resolution but casinos would be brought to Georgia.
However, this legislation can’t just pass the Senate and House to be made law, it must be approved by citizens of Georgia with a majority vote in the election.
SB 30 and Horse Racing In Georgia
Sen. Brandon Beach proposed SB 30 which would create the Georgia Horse Racing Commission and allow for the state to award limited licenses for racetracks.
This bill is named with the Rural Georgia Jobs Growth Act that was proposed by Beach in the 2019-2020 legislative session. This bill is bipartisan too, with Democratic Senator Ed Harbison co-sponsoring this bill.
SB 30 would allow a full range of horse betting in Georgia while also making the state some money as the price tag for the 10-year licenses is listed at $50 million with renewals costing $250 million. What could cause a bit of a stumbling block for SB 30 is that if any of the racetracks are within 50 miles of an airport, they must invest $250 million per facility and if outside of those 50 miles the initial investment drops to $125 million.
Those high prices will certainly limit the companies that are looking to buy in but for SB 30 to become law it would also have to pass with a majority vote by Georgia residents.
For Georgia residents, patience is probably the approach to take with this legislation as sooner rather than later the Peach State will have to cave to the demands of legalizing gambling.
ATLANTA - A proposal asking Georgia voters whether to legalize casinos, horse racing and sports betting in the Peach State is back on the table in the General Assembly.
The House Regulated Industries Committee approved a resolution Monday calling for a statewide referendum on all three forms of legalized gambling. The same panel approved a gambling vote in March, but it failed to reach the House floor for a vote before lawmakers took a three-month break to discourage the spread of coronavirus.
While that seemed to doom the measure for this year, it’s back up for debate during the final week of the 2020 legislative session because supporters inserted it into another proposed constitutional amendment identical to legislation that already had gained final passage.
Wild Bill's Casino
Lawmakers have been debating legalized gambling in Georgia for years, arguing among other things that voters deserve the chance to decide the issue once and for all.
Ga Casino Bill
“Whether you’re for or against the bill, allow the people to vote,” Rep. Ron Stephens, R-Savannah, a leading supporter of legalized gambling, told committee members Monday.
Stephens, chairman of the House Economic Development and Tourism Committee, has pitched legalized gambling throughout the years-old debate on the issue as a way to attract tourists and conventions to Georgia.
The state needs a boost to its economy particularly in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has forced businesses across Georgia to close their doors, he said.
Stephens said casinos, racetracks and sports betting also would inject needed additional revenue into Georgia’s HOPE Scholarships and pre-kindergarten programs.
The percentage of student tuition HOPE covers has been declining in recent years because of pressure on the lottery-funded program’s revenues resulting from growing enrollment in Georgia’s public colleges and universities.
The proposed constitutional amendment would create a fund that would cover the difference between HOPE scholarship awards and the actual cost of tuition for Georgia students from families earning below 50% of the state’s median income, Stephens said. A separate fund supported by gambling proceeds would help prop up the state’s budget reserves, he said.
Ga Casino Bill 2019
If voters approve the statewide referendum, Stephens noted, no casino, racetrack or sports betting parlor could be built in a community without the approval of local voters in a second referendum.
Ga Casino Bill
“It can’t come to your backyard until your backyard wants it,” he said.
As has been the case since Georgia lawmakers started talking about legalizing gambling, opposition has been spearheaded by faith-based groups.
Virginia Galloway, regional field director of the Duluth-based Faith and Freedom Coalition, said gambling brings crime and corruption to states where it’s legal.
“Any state that’s got gambling in it, you probably wouldn’t want to live,” Galloway told the committee. “I don’t want my state to become Louisiana, New Jersey [or] Illinois.”
The measure the House committee passed Monday is one of two 11th-hour efforts in the General Assembly to move forward on legalized gambling. A bill that would allow sports betting in Georgia cleared a state Senate committee last Friday.