Oddsmakers who say casinos are a long shot in Georgia may have been surprised Thursday afternoon when an updated version of a bill that would allow for four resort style casinos in the state passed out of committee.
HR 807 that would allow for a constitutional amendment asking voters to allow casinos in Georgia and HB 677 which would pave the way for four casinos sailed through the House Regulated Industries Committee Thursday. With this vote of approval, the legislation could get to the House floor for a vote before Monday — Crossover Day in this session of the General Assembly.
Rep. Ron Stephens (R-Savannah) and Majority Whip Rep. Matt Ramsey (R-Peachtree City) tag-teamed their presentation of the legislation in Thursday’s hearing. If approved, money from the four casinos across the state would be used to save the HOPE scholarship, Stephens said.
“We have watched HOPE scholarships dwindle from 100 percent funding to 70 percent,” Stephens said.
Initially, the casinos would have been under the regulatory control of the Georgia Lottery. However, under the newer version, they would fall under the governance of an independent gaming commission. The commission would be made up of five members, including an appointment by the Governor, the Attorney General, the Lt.Governor and Speaker of the House, and a fifth appointee.
Stephens stated that at least 90 percent of revenues from the casinos would be earmarked for the HOPE scholarships, Hope grants and the state’s Pre-K program. He also added that the legislation would require a portion of revenues from the casinos to fund programs for people suffering from gambling problems, and infrastructure and public safety money for the communities involved.
“This is a very long bill — over 71 pages — but there is something in the bill for everyone,” Stephens said.
According to Ramsey, the initial legislation called for six casinos across the state. The new version would allow for four casinos — two in metro Atlanta, and two outside the metro region.
“We spent the summer looking at the proposals, and through the process we learned a great deal,” said Ramsey, who co-chaired a committee to study the proposed of casino gambling in Georgia.
“The substitute bill we are presenting today is really the product of those meetings. It is a proposal we feel would be a tremendous benefit, and one we feel would allow the citizens of
Georgia to decide if they wanted casinos in the state,” Ramsey added. “This would not force casinos on anyone.”
The initial proposal called for a 12 percent tax rate on revenues, but Ramsey said Thursday the new bill calls for a 20 percent tax rate. The new version also includes an increased licensing fee. A large destination resort facility in Atlanta would carry a $40 million licensing fee, while a secondary license in the Atlanta area would have a price tag of $25 million. Ramsey said the two regional licenses, for outside the metro area, would have licensing fee of $15 million each.
“We agree with the initial legislation that Atlanta can support two casinos,” said Ramsey. “As for the other two, we felt it didn’t make sense for us to tell the market where it should go. We felt it best to create a region — the entire state outside of the metro area — and have two licenses awarded in that region.”
However, Ramsey said, legislation would dictate that the two casinos outside the metro area be located at least 50 miles apart.
