Pennsylvania Skill Game D-Day Looms as Legislative Fix Fails

Today (Oct. 13) is the final day for Pennsylvania skill games, as the state Supreme Court’s ruling that the controversial devices are illegal slot machines takes effect. Beginning tomorrow (Oct. 14), businesses that continue to house skill games risk law enforcement action, including raids, seizures, and criminal prosecution.

Before the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled in June that skill games are slot machines under the Gaming Act, state officials estimated that there were more than 70,000 skill games operating across the commonwealth. Most commonly branded Pennsylvania Skill, the games allow players to slightly alter the machine’s payout rate through memory-based bonus round challenges.

The court ruled that the skill component did not exempt the machines, which are otherwise based on chance, from the state’s gambling law.

Legislative Deadline Passes

There are many members of the Pennsylvania General Assembly who want to keep skill games. Proponents say the slot machines have saved countless small businesses, providing additional revenue that helped offset inflation and stave off job cuts.

Though legislation has been considered in Harrisburg, the deadline has passed to keep skill games operating uninterrupted.

The Pennsylvania Constitution includes a three-day rule that requires every bill to be considered on three different days in each chamber before it can be passed to the governor. There is no emergency exception.

• https://www.casino.org/news/pennsylvania-skill-game-d-day-looms-legislative-fix-fails/