Gambling expansion fails again

House, Senate bills varied; slot machine rules at root of collapse

TALLAHASSEE — You won’t be rolling snake eyes or spinning the wheel any time soon. Gambling legislation failed to get through Florida’s Legislature again this year.

Legislators came very close to a comprehensive gambling bill that would have brought at least one new casino to South Florida, allowed race tracks to halt races and operate just as casinos, and guaranteed craps and roulette for the Seminole Tribe.

Gamblers aren’t losing anything they can do now, but they aren’t getting anything new.

The issue of slot machines caused gambling talks to collapse Tuesday, said the Senate’s chief negotiator, state Sen. Bill Galvano, R-Bradenton.

The Senate called for any county whose voters have approved slots to be allowed to have them at pari-

mutuels within the county. Palm Beach County and seven others have done so.

The House wanted no new slots outside of Broward and Miami-Dade counties, where they are already legal.

The House and Senate had passed gambling bills, but the two bills were very different, necessitating a conference between six House and six Senate members to negotiate a gambling deal.

The Florida Supreme Court will likely decide whether those counties can have slots in a court case that has already been heard. A decision could come down any time.

“This definitely has the potential of having the courts set the policy,” Galvano said.

It also means the state will not get a guaranteed $3 billion from the Seminole Tribe in exchange for craps and roulette. While the first year of that money, an estimated $220 million, had not been part of budget talks, had the gambling conference succeeded, the money could have been added in.

It also means the current agreement between the state and the Seminoles on gambling is falling apart, with the Seminoles having little reason to negotiate a new one. That agreement ends in 2030, though certain provisions have already expired.

The Seminoles only had the right to offer blackjack through 2015, but were able to continue offering it through 2030 after a court found the state had violated the agreement by allowing games similar to blackjack at pari-mutuels.

The House’s chief gambling negotiator, state Rep. Jose Felix Diaz, R-Miami, said that a new agreement with the Seminoles is off the table for now.

“They have no negotiating position and we’re not negotiating,” Diaz said. “We’re not any weaker or stronger. We just are nowhere.”