Officials struggle with COAM solution
Ƈ Attorney says local action on gaming machines may spark legal challenges.
With moratoriums in place, officials in Rome, Cave Spring, and Floyd County are researching ways to address what they termed as significant issues surrounding coin-operated amusement machines.
The gaming machines are regulated by the Georgia Lottery Corporation, so there are limits to what actions local governments can take.
“The reality is, maybe not at every one of these establishments, but oftentimes, in addition to the playing of the games, there is prostitution and drug activity, and that’s the problem,” said Floyd County Commission Chair Allison Watters during Tuesday’s Rome-floyd Joint
Services Committee meeting. “So, what are we going to do? We feel we should get some of the money to help solve some of those issues.”
Rome Mayor Craig Mcdaniel told the committee that his biggest issue with the gaming machines is that there is a lot of money leaving the area, and the local governments get nothing. He noted that gaming machines brought in over $1.4 billion in gross revenue statewide in 2023.
“The lottery only gets 5% of that money,” he said. “The rest of that money is divided equally between the people who have the contracts and the operators. If we were to require a stamp, and they to go through an office — I am using the city clerk’s office as an example — where we could go in and charge a fee for each machine, and that stamp had to be renewed every year.”
Mcdaniel added that the revenue that is raised from the fees could go to address issues in the community such as homelessness, mental health, substance abuse, and lack of transitional housing.
Assistant Floyd County Attorney Chris Jackson warned the committee that implementing such a fee could result in legal challenges.
“If you are going beyond what the code says you can do, the 10 or 11 items we can definitely regulate, one of these stores is going to say we are going too far and they will immediately sue and ask for a restraining order off of that,” he said. “It doesn’t mean that this isn’t the way to go, but it means that you have to go into it with eyes wide open.”
According to Jackson, the county has been considering requiring business licenses to have some sort of say about gaming machines.
He added that one of the first steps during the moratorium is to get an exact number of how many machines there are in the county. He suggested the best solution would be a statewide solution.
Watters proposed that members of the committee get the blessings of both the Rome City and Floyd County commissions to proceed, and then consult with the Georgia Municipal
Association and the Association County Commissioners of Georgia for suggestions. She also said they should contact state Sen. Chuck Hufstetler, R-rome, and other members of the local legislative delegation to see if there is a statewide solution.
In March of this year alone, coin-operated amusement machines brought in $132,208,671.22 in net revenue, with the lottery receiving $13,221,002.69, according to the Georgia Lottery Corporation website.