MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — The Alabama House of Representatives on Thursday rejected Senate changes to lottery and gambling legislation as the two chambers remain apart on whether to allow sports betting and multiple casinos in the state.
Representatives voted to send the bill to a conference committee. It was the first legislative action on the bill that has been stalled since the Alabama Senate scaled back a sweeping House-passed plan that would have allowed a lottery, sports betting and up to 10 casinos with table games. The Senate version would not allow sport betting and would not allow casinos outside of tribal land.
“The optimism is gone," Sen. Greg Albritton, who handled the bill in the Senate, said of his hope of reaching a compromise. He said some senators have taken hard lines stances against sports betting or allowing casinos.
"There is plenty of middle ground. There is plenty of opportunity. What we are battling is entrenchment," Albritton said.
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.
Blackshear said he is hopeful that lawmakers can reach an agreement, but he also acknowledged there is a vast difference between what the two chambers approved.
“I think we've got to identify what that middle ground is first because it's such a distance between the two. They're not even close bookends. So we've got to first off establish what that middle ground looks like and then have those conversations," 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.
The Alabama Senate is expected to appoint a conference committee when members return to Montgomery next week.
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