Current:Home > ScamsAlabama lottery, casino legislation heads to conference committee-InfoLens
Alabama lottery, casino legislation heads to conference committee
View Date:2024-12-23 10:55:40
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Legislation that would authorize a lottery and other types of gambling in Alabama is headed to a conference committee as lawmakers try to bridge divisions over sports betting and the number of casino sites.
The Alabama House of Representatives voted Thursday to reject Senate changes to gambling legislation and go to a conference committee to try to negotiate a compromise. Lawmakers are trying to find common ground between a sweeping House-passed plan that would include sports betting and up to 10 casinos with table games and a scaled-back version of the bill, which excluded sports betting and allowed fewer casinos, that was approved by the Alabama Senate.
Rep. Chris Blackshear, the House sponsor of the bill, told representatives that he believed the Senate was leaving the potential for hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue “on the floor” with the scaled-back bill.
“I think we need to have some detailed conversations with the Senate conferees... I think there are some details we can provide to them that may help them understand why we sent the package that we did,” Blackshear said.
House members had approved a proposed constitutional amendment to allow a state lottery, sports-betting at in-person sites and online platforms, and up to 10 casino sites with table games and slot machines. The Senate plan eliminated sports betting and reduced the number of potential casino sites.
The Senate version would allow a state lottery, electronic wagering machines at dog tracks and several other locations and require the governor to negotiate a compact with the Poarch Band of Creek Indians. A compact could pave the way for the tribe to have full-fledged casinos with table games at its three sites in the state.
Any gambling proposal would have to be approved by both three-fifths of lawmakers and a majority of voters. Alabamians have not voted on gambling since a proposed lottery was rejected in 1999.
House Speaker Nathaniel Ledbetter said in a statement that he was hopeful that lawmakers will find a compromise.
“If one thing has been made clear throughout this process, it’s that the people of Alabama want and deserve an opportunity to vote on this issue,” Ledbetter said.
veryGood! (317)
Related
- NATO’s Rutte calls for more Western support for Ukraine, warns of Russian alliances
- Mbappé and Hakimi score as PSG wins 2-0 against Dortmund in Champions League
- Hyundai rushing to open Georgia plant because of law rewarding domestic electric vehicle production
- Biden and Brazil’s Lula meeting in New York to discuss labor, climate
- Ex-Phoenix Suns employee files racial discrimination, retaliation lawsuit against the team
- Mbappé and Hakimi score as PSG wins 2-0 against Dortmund in Champions League
- How clutch are the Baltimore Orioles? And what does it mean for their World Series hopes?
- RHOC's Tamra Judge Reveals Conversation She Had With Shannon Beador Hours After DUI Arrest
- San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich had mild stroke this month, team says
- India asks citizens to be careful if traveling to Canada as rift escalates over Sikh leader’s death
Ranking
- Pie, meet donuts: Krispy Kreme releases Thanksgiving pie flavor ahead of holidays
- Thousands of mink let loose from fur farm in Pennsylvania
- England’s National Health Service operates on holiday-level staffing as doctors’ strike escalates
- Tunisian president’s remarks on Storm Daniel have been denounced as antisemitic and prompt an uproar
- Tennessee fugitive accused of killing a man and lying about a bear chase is caught in South Carolina
- Black high school student suspended in Texas because of dreadlocks
- New Zealand rattled by magnitude 5.6 quake but no immediate reports of major damage or injuries
- Taco Bell employee accused of using customer credit cards to make fraudulent purchases
Recommendation
-
Week 10 fantasy football rankings: PPR, half-PPR and standard leagues
-
Browns star Nick Chubb suffers another severe knee injury, expected to miss rest of NFL season
-
British police officer is charged with murder of unarmed Black man in London
-
McCarthy faces seemingly impossible task trying to unite House GOP and avoid government shutdown
-
'SNL' stars jokingly declare support for Trump, Dana Carvey plays Elon Musk
-
Taylor Swift and Sophie Turner Step Out for a Perfectly Fine Night in New York City
-
'Hello, humans': Meet Aura, the Las Vegas Sphere's humanoid robots designed to help guests
-
Amazon driver in very serious condition after she's bitten by highly venomous rattlesnake while dropping off package in Florida