With the clock running out for Pennsylvania\u2019s \u201cskill games,\u201d industry supporters are trying to convince the state\u2019s highest court that state officials just need a bit more time to draft new rules for the industry to keep it alive.<\/p>\n
But the past few days suggest there\u2019s a long way to go before an agreement is reached.<\/p>\n
Four legislators \u2014 two Democrats and two Republicans \u2014 petitioned the state Supreme Court Tuesday<\/a> asking it to delay the effect of a ruling it made this summer. The court had determined that skill games \u2014 which are similar to slot machines but can be found almost everywhere except casinos \u2014 were illegal. But it gave legislators until Oct. 13 to come up with a framework for legalizing them.<\/p>\n Tuesday\u2019s filing acknowledged that the legislature had made little headway since the court\u2019s order in June. But, it said, \u201cWhat has changed is the legislative posture. \u2026 Members of the General Assembly have taken up that task.\u201d<\/p>\n As Exhibit A, it attached a sponsorship memo that outlined a proposal offered by House Democrat Danilo Burgos of Philadelphia, who was one of the four legislators seeking the court delay.<\/p>\n Burgos\u2019 proposal, which the filing said was backed by more than 100 members of the 203-member House, sketched out a plan to levy a monthly $500 charge on each machine, and dedicate those proceeds to investing in transportation and first responders.<\/p>\n But less than a day later, the attorney for the legislators asked for their filing to be withdrawn. And when they refiled a new one Wednesday, most of the arguments were the same \u2026 but the sponsorship memo and list of sponsors were gone.<\/p>\n The bill itself hadn\u2019t been formally introduced or assigned a number; and the web page on which the original court filing linked to the sponsorship memo can no longer be found.<\/p>\n What happened?<\/p>\n \u201cNot sure,\u201d said Republican state Rep. Jeremy Shaffer, who was among the Burgos bill\u2019s cosponsors. \u201cI was surprised it got pulled.\u201d<\/p>\n A Democratic House member \u201cwas kind of slapped down by his own leadership,\u201d said Republican state Rep. Russ Diamond, minority chair of the House Gaming Oversight Committee.<\/p>\n Diamond didn\u2019t identify Burgos by name. But when the legislators refiled their request for a delay, Burgos was no longer listed among the petitioners.<\/p>\n A request for comment made to the office of House majority leader Matt Bradford was not returned Thursday. Burgos also did not respond to a request for comment Thursday.<\/p>\n Diamond, who represents rural and suburban Lebanon County, said he opposed Burgos\u2019 bill because it would\u2019ve set aside money for transportation, \u201cwhich is secret code for Philadelphia mass transit.\u201d But he said, \u201cI figured, \u2018OK [skill games makers] are going for a full-court push here.\u2019 But it didn\u2019t happen.\u201d<\/p>\n Other legislators were wary of discussing the matter publicly, both because it involved a lightning-rod political issue, and because they didn’t want to discuss the dynamics within their ranks.<\/p>\n But several Harrisburg insiders told WESA that, despite the filing\u2019s upbeat assessment of progress, legislators are far from unified around any skill games proposal \u2014 and that even those identified as cosponsors of the bill did not necessarily agree on fundamental provisions of it.<\/p>\n Legislators sometimes sign on as cosponsors with the hope or expectation of being able to amend a bill later in the process, and sources told WESA that was the case for at least some of the sponsors of the Burgos proposal.<\/p>\n Lawmakers have also heard from skill-games supporters in their districts who hope to benefit from game revenue \u2014 ranging from gas station and bar owners to veterans’ groups and volunteer fire departments. Backing the bill’s introduction, at least, would be a way of responding to those calls for action.<\/p>\n But though there is support in some quarters for the per-machine levy, some Democrats especially are holding to demands for the 52-percent tax rate. Gov. Josh Shapiro, who would be part of any agreement on skill games, reaffirmed his support for a tax at that level during a televised gubernatorial debate<\/a> Wednesday evening.<\/p>\n Some observers still think a deal is possible, though not by the Oct. 13 deadline. And while Burgos has withdrawn from the request for a court delay, three other legislators signed up for the second go-around: Republican House member Jonathan Fritz and Sens. Anthony Williams (D-Philadelphia) and Gene Yaw (R-Lycoming).<\/p>\n Nor are they alone: The skill-games industry itself is also asking the court to stay its hand.<\/p>\n