Legislation to Remove Middleman

There has been much talk and strife over one of the original ideas placed in the initial phase of bringing slot machines to Pennsylvania. There was a provision that said all slot machines needed to be purchased through middlemen, that no gambling establishment could purchase the slot machines directly from the distributors.

Many were angry over the idea, they said they thought that this was one more way the government has their hand in the cookie jar. The slot machine middlemen would have to pay a fee to the state to get the approval to become one, which meant more money to PA. Others said that it was one more of the checks and balances the state was trying to put in place so that corruption could be thwarted in the slot machine process.

A State Senate committee approved the bill unanimously yesterday, and it is now on its way for a vote to the full State Senate, where many believe it will be passed as well. Replacing the slot machine middleman would be a provision that limits all slot machine manufacturers to the number of slots they could supply. It restricts them to supplying fifty percent of a casino’s slot machines for three years, which would enable the smaller manufacturers to have a chance at competing with the industry giants, such as International Game Technology. Needless to say, International Gaming Technology (IGT) is fundamentally opposed to the bill.

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