PA state police offer resources ahead of deadline to remove skill game machines<\/a><\/p>\nGuzman said lawmakers have been unable to agree on two major issues: how heavily to tax the machines and how to distribute the resulting revenue.<\/p>\n
He said the court\u2019s classification of skill games as slot machines raises constitutional questions about whether they must be taxed at the same 52% rate as casino slot machines.<\/p>\n
Another disagreement concerns whether revenue should support the state\u2019s general fund or mass transit systems, including those serving Reading and other Pennsylvania communities.<\/p>\n
Guzman placed responsibility for the impasse on both parties and both legislative chambers.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe blame is on both sides of the aisle, both Democrat and Republican,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Looking ahead, Guzman said Gov. Josh Shapiro could call a special legislative session, although he does not expect that to happen. Lawmakers are otherwise scheduled to return after the November election.<\/p>\n
Any eventual agreement, he said, must resolve the tax question and determine how revenue will be allocated. He also questioned whether legislation passed by the House could secure the 26 Senate votes needed for approval.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe got a large fight ahead of us,\u201d Guzman said.<\/p>\n
![\"Some](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/REG-L-SkillGamesRally1641.jpg\")
Some attendees wear matching T-shirts in support of skill games during a rally at the Reverb Club, 1402 N. Ninth St., Reading, on Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026. (BILL UHRICH\/READING EAGLE)<\/p>\n
Other speakers at the session described the financial consequences of losing the machines.<\/p>\n
Scott Reitnauer of Eastern Berks Fire Department said skill game revenue helps pay employees, utilities and equipment costs. The department also recently borrowed $150,000 for repairs to its roof and back wall.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know how I\u2019m going to make my payments,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Joe Magee, a Philadelphia-area tavern owner, said the machines have become essential to businesses struggling with inflation, higher wages and lingering pandemic-related debt.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf these skill games go away, the only thing we can possibly do is raise our prices to meet today\u2019s inflation,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Business owner Juan Rivera urged attendees to contact the governor and legislative leaders and demand action.<\/p>\n
![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/REG-L-SkillGamesRally1642.jpg\")
A rally in support of skill games and the organizations that rely on them was held at the Reverb Club, 1402 N. Ninth St., Reading, on Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026. (BILL UHRICH\/READING EAGLE)<\/p>\n
During a question-and-answer session, attendees also expressed frustration over uncertainty surrounding enforcement and whether machines could remain on premises after being disabled.<\/p>\n
Jeanna Bouzek, senior vice president of operations for Pace-O-Matic, said the company has repeatedly adjusted its plans in response to changing state police guidance.<\/p>\n
Despite the approaching deadline, Guzman said he remains committed to finding a legislative solution.<\/p>\n
\u201cI support your industry,\u201d he told the gathering. \u201cI recognize how transformational it has been for business owners, not just in Reading and Berks County, but all across the commonwealth.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"State Rep. Manny Guzman Jr. says the fight to legalize and regulate skill games in Pennsylvania is far…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":303067,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[349,182,139,28,29,128,130,129,706],"class_list":["post-303066","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-reading","tag-berks-county","tag-local-news","tag-news","tag-pennsylvania","tag-pennsylvania-news","tag-reading-city","tag-reading-city-headlines","tag-reading-city-news","tag-top-stories-reg"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/303066","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=303066"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/303066\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/303067"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=303066"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=303066"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=303066"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
![\"Skill](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/REG-L-SkillGamesRally1635_d00cd1.jpeg\")
Skill games at a Berks County fire company social club have been disabled prior to the Oct. 13 deadline for their removal. (BILL UHRICH\/READING EAGLE)<\/p>\n