Anti-gambling amendment headed to 2018 ballot

Voters in November might get the chance to make all future decisions about expanding gambling in Florida.

A proposed constitutional amendment says voters would need to approve any expansion of casino gambling with a 60 percent majority vote.

Voters in Charge, the group behind what’s called Amendment 3, announced Wednesday it had gained enough petition signatures to qualify for the November ballot — more than 800,000 in all. To pass, 60 percent of voters must approve the amendment.

Voters in Charge had been backed by an odd mix of gambling and anti-gambling interests, with Disney — long a foe of gambling in the state — giving the group the most money and the Seminole Tribe coming in second. Curbing new gambling operations means less competition for existing ones, making for strange bedfellows.

The announcement came on the same day that a Senate committee approved major gambling legislation that would slash taxes on slot machine revenue, protect fantasy sports from gambling regulation, clear up the legality of some types of card games and possibly end greyhound racing in the state.

It could represent the Legislature’s last chance to make big changes to state gambling laws if voters approve the amendment in 2018.

The gambling bill (SB 840), approved by the Senate Regulated Industries committee, faces an uphill battle to become law. Only the fantasy sports protection has a companion bill in the House.

But the bill’s sponsor, state Sen. Travis Hutson, R-Elkton, said, “The Florida House is working on a bill as we speak and will put something out in the next couple weeks.”

The gambling bill would lower taxes on slots from 35 percent to 25 percent over two years. Fantasy sports, including sites such as DraftKings and FanDuel, would be protected from gambling regulation.

Designated player games, a form of card game that was at the center of a lawsuit between the state and the Seminole Tribe that eventually resulted in the Seminoles being allowed to operate blackjack through 2030, would also be legalized.

The greyhound portion would give racetracks the option of continuing to operate their casinos but not have dog races. That would allow Magic City Casino in Miami and Mardi Gras Casino in Hallandale Beach to keep lucrative slot machines without racing. North of the Broward line, including at the Palm Beach Kennel Club, dog tracks would be able to stop races but continue to operate their card rooms.

Horse tracks also would have the option of ending races and simply becoming casinos but would have only a 30-day window to decide after the bill becomes law.

Horse and dog breeders spoke out against the bill.

“You’re talking about losing 3,000 direct jobs, 10,000 indirect jobs and putting the well-being of all these racing greyhounds in jeopardy,” said former lieutenant governor Jeff Kottkamp, now a lobbyist for the Florida Greyhound Association, a greyhound breeders’ interest group.

For the past two years, the Florida Legislature has tried to put together comprehensive gambling bills that would address the state’s agreement on gambling with the Seminole Tribe, parimutuel casinos, destination casino resorts in South Florida and much more.

Last year, the attempt culminated in high-level negotiations between the chambers, which fell apart when the more anti-gambling House could not come to terms with the Senate.