Florida Voters May Have a Ballot Initiative for Expanded Gambling

There is a group of people in Florida that is opposed to gambling expansion. This group recently declared that it had collected sufficient signatures for a distinct ballot initiative that will be placed before those voting at the upcoming midterm elections of the state.

A report from last week suggests that the organization i.e. Voters In Charge’ has collected more than 800,000 signatures for its Amendment 3 or Voter Control of Gambling Amendment to be a part of the ballot.

In case the amendment is included in the forthcoming ballot and gets passed with 60% votes, the lawmakers in the state would need to pitch for the same number of votes at the election before they can make any changes to the legislation on expanded gambling. According to reports in the Sun-Sentinel paper, the Voters In Charge organization is rooting for The Walt Disney Company to get its maximum share of funding even though the Seminole Tribe of Florida has allegedly made the second-highest donation. The latter is a casino-operating entity.

The official website of Voters In Charge has a statement reading that The Voter Control of Gambling Amendment has been formulated to put the future of Florida in the hands of the voters with regards to gambling. It also highlights that for the longest time, lobbyists and campaign contributions have flooded the political system of Florida with gambling interests and that it is high-time that that voter approval be given its due importance for casino gambling.

News in the Sun-Sentinel also suggests that the announcement by Voters In Charge was made on the day when the Senate Regulated Industries Committee of the state approved a legislation on cutting taxes on casino slots (from 35 percent to 25 percent) in addition to protecting operators of fantasy sports like DraftKings and FanDuel from existing gaming regulations.

Travis Hutson, the senator of the state, has sponsored this measure. He explained that the proposed Senate Bill 840 would additionally legalize ‘banked’ games like blackjack throughout Florida. At the same time, dog and horse tracks would have the freedom to avoid races while retaining their slots.

But the Sun-Sentinel informed that the proposal set forth by the Republicans will face a major battle to convert to legislation. Hutson is quite optimistic that the state’s House of Representatives has been busy formulating a bill and will present something within a couple of weeks.