Pennsylvania Expanding Gambling for Private Clubs
A new bill introduced this month by State Rep. Ron Marscio (R-Lower Paxton Township) proposes to raise the payout limit on small games of chance from $5,000 a week to $20,000 a week, a measure which would bolster gambling in private clubs throughout Pennsylvania.
"The law needs updating. It needs to be modernized," said Marsico.
The American Legion in Mechanicsburg, Pa., which donates its winnings to the Lebanon Veterans Administration Medical Center, is welcoming the coming changes in the gaming laws.
"The more money they let us make, the more money goes out to charities," said Joseph Cekovich, president of Post 109 of the American Legion, a voluntary association of military veterans.
Another Bill
Local non-profits also may be empowered by a separate bill that Rep. Tom Caltagirone (D-Berks) is planning to introduce. That measure would allow clubs with state liquor licenses to operate slot machines.Through that proposal, the night clubs could have up to five slot machines, and the maximum payout on any machine would be $1,000. The clubs would have to pay $100 to get a slots license, he said.
"You are not going to stop gambling in this state," Caltagirone said. "We legalized it. Why can't we do something to help the clubs?"
According to Steven Ketterer, chief of the Harrisburg River Rescue and Emergency Services, the non-profit group is one of 213 organizations with such a license in the counties of Dauphin, Cumberland, Lebanon, Perry and York.
The non-profit association makes most of its money by holding weekly bingo games. Though the Penn National Race Course in Grantville has yet to open a casino, Ketterer speculates as to what effect the casino will have on the bingo business.
His group would welcome new slots. "We're looking for alternative revenue," he said. "Anything we could do to entice renters to rent the hall. We would encourage that."
The Pennsylvania Tavern Association (PTA) wants that, too, as long as for-profit bars also are allowed slot machines.
"Everyone would be able to increase their profits," said Amy Christie, executive director of the association. "The retail licenses, nonprofit and private clubs would not be in constant competition.:
Gambling in Pennsylvania is a competitive business, even among private clubs and non-profit groups, experts said.
Small games of chance have been one of the primary ways charitable groups have raised money. For example, the American Legion Post in Mechanicsburg, Pa., runs a game in which members can buy tickets and match them against games on a card, something similar to a scratch-off ticket.
The American Legion and other not-for-profit clubs today can pay out $5,000 a week in winnings. Once that threshold is met, that game's are over. With about 4,000 members, that threshold generally is quickly reached.
"Most of the local clubs could go through $5,000 a day," said Rhonda Johnston, manager of American Legion Post 109 in Mechanicsburg.. "It's tying our hands."
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