Floridan Gambling Bill May Not See the Light of Day in 2019

Monday evening turned out to be extremely disheartening for pro-gambling residents and legislators in Florida, as rumors went round that the proposed Gambling Bill would be rejected in the Florida Senate.

One legislator who wished to remain anonymous stated that there’s a 99% chance the Florida Senate would reject the proposed Gambling Bill once the next Legislative Session resumes this year. Another legislator seconded this opinion, stating the move would be in line with the Senate’s anti-gambling leanings.

When asked for a comment, House Speaker José Oliva stated that the timing of the Bill was one of the reasons why it had a high likelihood of rejection. According to Speaker Oliva, the Gambling Bill was introduced very late in the Session and it had too many issues which needed ironing out, making immediate implementation near-impossible.

Another reason instrumental to the rejection, stated Speaker Oliva, was the ambiguity about what constitutes gambling in the State of Florida. Till date, there has been no consensus regarding what can be offered as gambling both in Tribe-owned and non-Tribe casinos.

When asked their views about the rumors, a representative of the Seminole Tribe confirmed under anonymity that the Senate hadn’t activated them yet and there was no guarantee if or when they ever would.

Bill objective

The proposed Gambling Bill was designed to address the growing tensions between the Seminole Tribe and Florida State regarding the sharing of gambling revenues. The Bill was proposed after the Seminole Tribe won their designated player games lawsuit against the State and which now allows them to offer designated player games at their Hard Rock casinos without paying any dues to the State.

Now as the day when the Tribe is legally free to stop making payments comes closer, the State has been desperate to strike a deal that would encourage the Seminoles to continue making payments.

Trilby Republican Sen. Wilton Simpson had confirmed in an interview with the press last month, about the possibility of using the Seminole Tribe as a hub for sports betting. Talks were in progress to offer craps, roulette, horse racing, dog racing and jai alai frontons in the State, by routing them through the Tribe. The Bill would allow the Seminoles to partake of sports betting earnings from even those casinos that operated outside the Tribe’s facilities.

Now, with the Gambling Bill rumored to be rejected, the offer to the Tribes may fall through. There is no comment yet about what may happen between the State and the Tribe in the coming weeks.