Signed by Governor Ralph Northam

Vote Smart's Synopsis:

Vote to adopt a conference report that authorizes casino gaming in eligible cities with the process of a referendum.

Highlights:

• Defines “casino gaming” as baccarat, blackjack, 21, poker, craps, dice, slot machines, sports betting, roulette wheels, Klondike tables, punchboards, faro layouts, keno layouts, numbers tickets, push cards, jar tickets, pull tabs, online gaming, and any other activity that is authorized by the Board as a wagering game or device under Chapter 41 (Chapter 789).

• Defines the “Board” as the Virginia Lottery Board established by this chapter (Chapter 789).

• Expands the duties of the Director of the Virginia Lottery to include the regulation of casino gambling (Chapter 789).

• Limits casino gambling to any city (Chapter 789):

• Where at least 40 percent of the assessed value of all real estate is exempt from local property taxation, according to the Virginia Department of Taxation Annual Report for Fiscal Year 2017, and that experienced a population decrease of at least 7 percent from 1990 to 2016;

• With at least a 5 percent unemployment rate in November 2017, a poverty rate of at least 20 percent in 2016, and a population decrease of at least 20 percent from 1990 to 2016;

• With at least a 4 percent unemployment rate in November 2017, a poverty rate of at least 20 percent in 2016, a population decrease of at least 4 percent from 1990 to 2016, and is located adjacent to a state that adopted a Border Region Retail Tourism Development District Act; and

• With a population greater than 200,000 according to 2017 population estimates from the Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service, and in which at least 24 percent of the assessed value of all real estate in such is exempt from local property taxation, according to the Virginia Department of Taxation Annual Report for Fiscal Year 2017, as long as the casino gaming is conducted by a properly recognized Virginia Indian tribe.

• Limits the Board in issuing more than 1 operator’s license for each city (Chapter 789).

• Limits the issuing of an operator’s license to a casino gaming project that involves a minimum capital investment of $200 million (Chapter 789).

• Prohibits the Department from granting an initial license to operate a gaming operation until a referendum is held in each city that will host the casino gaming operation, and the city approves the license through a ballot measure (Chapter 789).

Full Bill Text

Vote Smart's Synopsis:

Vote to adopt a conference report that authorizes casino gaming in eligible cities with the process of a referendum.

Highlights:

• Defines “casino gaming” as baccarat, blackjack, 21, poker, craps, dice, slot machines, sports betting, roulette wheels, Klondike tables, punchboards, faro layouts, keno layouts, numbers tickets, push cards, jar tickets, pull tabs, online gaming, and any other activity that is authorized by the Board as a wagering game or device under Chapter 41 (Chapter 789).

• Defines the “Board” as the Virginia Lottery Board established by this chapter (Chapter 789).

• Expands the duties of the Director of the Virginia Lottery to include the regulation of casino gambling (Chapter 789).

• Limits casino gambling to any city (Chapter 789):

• Where at least 40 percent of the assessed value of all real estate is exempt from local property taxation, according to the Virginia Department of Taxation Annual Report for Fiscal Year 2017, and that experienced a population decrease of at least 7 percent from 1990 to 2016;

• With at least a 5 percent unemployment rate in November 2017, a poverty rate of at least 20 percent in 2016, and a population decrease of at least 20 percent from 1990 to 2016;

• With at least a 4 percent unemployment rate in November 2017, a poverty rate of at least 20 percent in 2016, a population decrease of at least 4 percent from 1990 to 2016, and is located adjacent to a state that adopted a Border Region Retail Tourism Development District Act; and

• With a population greater than 200,000 according to 2017 population estimates from the Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service, and in which at least 24 percent of the assessed value of all real estate in such is exempt from local property taxation, according to the Virginia Department of Taxation Annual Report for Fiscal Year 2017, as long as the casino gaming is conducted by a properly recognized Virginia Indian tribe.

• Limits the Board in issuing more than 1 operator’s license for each city (Chapter 789).

• Limits the issuing of an operator’s license to a casino gaming project that involves a minimum capital investment of $200 million (Chapter 789).

• Prohibits the Department from granting an initial license to operate a gaming operation until a referendum is held in each city that will host the casino gaming operation, and the city approves the license through a ballot measure (Chapter 789).

Full Bill Text