Virginia Senate Narrowly Approves Online Casino Bill
After another close call and some procedural drama, Locke’s iGaming bill heads to lower chamber
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The full Virginia Senate passed state Sen. Mamie Locke’s bill attempting to legalize online casino gaming Monday, but not without some logistical drama.
A first vote on SB 118 came up 20-19 against passage, but Sen. Schuyler VanValkenburg called for a reconsideration of the vote — as he was allowed to do as a member of the majority vote. That measure was overwhelmingly approved, which allowed for Locke to request the bill be passed by for the day.
Locke successfully opened the passed by vote following recess later during Monday’s session. She then called for another full vote on SB 118, which this time passed 19-17. VanValkenburg, along with Sens. Bill DeSteph and Stella Pekarsky, did not cast votes after all three were “nays” in the early session.
The bill will now head to the House, where the companion legislation, HB 161, is scheduled to be heard in the Appropriations Committee on Tuesday and likely the full lower chamber should it pass. Tuesday is the last day for chambers to act on their own bills before transmitting them to the opposite body.
Del. Marcus Simon’s legislation for the House had substitute language from the Appropriations Committee engrossed Monday. Language requiring Simon’s bill to pass in back-to-back General Assembly chambers — HB 161 would also require passage in 2027 to enact iGaming — remains, as does a proposal to ban sweepstakes casinos.
Locke’s bill withstands late scrutiny
State Sen. William Stanley Jr. offered strenuous opposition to Locke’s bill, noting how legalization would make casino gaming available on a smartphone after “we’ve all passed bills to restrict children’s usage of it to keep them focused on what they have in school rather than focused on that addictive smartphone.”
Stanley, who had backed previous efforts to legalize skill games in the commonwealth, added that having access to casino gaming on a mobile device is “not modernization. That’s madness.” The state senator from Hampton cited multiple studies and anecdotes in addition to claiming “calls to Virginia’s own problem gambling hotline from young adults have skyrocketed since online [sports] betting expanded.”
Sen. Bryce Reeves, who voted against Locke’s bill in the General Laws and Technology subcommittee and again in the full committee vote, rose up once more in opposition on the Senate floor. He called online casino gaming “a step too far,” and cited a study by the National Council on Problem Gaming that “six percent of students were addicted to gambling, or nearly double the national average.”
Sen. David Suetterlein was the last legislator to speak in opposition, saying iGaming “takes the worst parts of the casino and has none of the redeeming qualities” while also echoing concerns expressed by Stanley and Reeves.
In her closing remarks, Locke reminded her fellow senators that her bill “would put parameters around something that is illegal.” She also mentioned that no one under the age of 21 would be allowed to gamble on online casinos, compared to 18 for the state lottery.
