The building of Vegas style gambling operations in Florida has the legislature in a frenzy. The casinos may spell good news for the Seminole Tribe, but House Leaders are expressing legitimate concerns abut the proposed major expansion of authorized gambling.
Last week, House Speaker Marco Rubio, Speaker Designate Ray Sansom, Majority Leader Adam Hasner and other top House Republicans warned Crist that "We cannot support any compact that would permit the tribe to conduct more types of gambling than it is entitled to under federal law.
"Because of our opposition to the expansion of gambling, we believe that the pursuit of increased revenue for the state should be of secondary importance in Florida's negotiations with the tribe," the lawmakers said.
"For us, money is not, and will never be, the primary consideration. Rather, we believe the aim of the negotiations should be to agree to the bare minimum of gambling to which the tribe is entitled under the law. Instead of maximizing revenue, we want to minimize the inevitable social harm associated with expanded tribal gambling."
The slot machines are already in place, but they are permissible - even without a compact between the Seminoles and the state - because they operate under a convoluted electronic bingo game that converts the results into spinning reels. As a result, they are indistinguishable from conventional slots.
But allowing blackjack, baccarat and similar games would be a major step toward Vegas casinos. How long before South Florida and other parts of the state begin pressing for competition?
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