Bet the house on Pa. banking on gambling

Every time the Keystone State finds itself in a financial pinch it turns to its favorite vice.

Interested in a sure bet? Forget the lottery. Put your house on the Pennsylvania Legislature.

How so. Simple. Every time the Keystone State finds itself in a financial pinch – and when was the last time the state did not need more revenue? – it turns to its favorite vice.

Yes, instead of reforming government programs, cutting costs, or considering new sources of revenue (as in new taxes), our elected officials instead roll the dice. But this isn’t gambling. For the state, it’s a sure thing. For bettors? Not so much. And for all the social ills that ride the coattails of this massive foray into legal wagering, it’s a litany of broken lives and family woe.

This all started with the state lottery. Remember when the Pennsylvania Lottery was rolled out? The Daily Number made its debut back in 1971. It was meant to benefit senior citizens, a single drawing every night at 7 p.m. Of course, that quickly morphed into a staggering array of state-sponsored lottery games.

Pennsylvania now rakes in more than $4 billion from lottery games. It’s not enough.

Tired of seeing Pennsylvania residents routinely take their money to Atlantic City or Delaware, Gov. Ed Rendell pushed through legislation to allow slot machines in gaming parlors. Harrah’s landed on the Chester waterfront. The slots revenue was supposed to offer citizens a break on their property taxes. How did that work out?

Not even the one-armed bandits could satisfy Harrisburg’s thirst for more revenue. Six years later, the Legislature approved table games in state casinos, in effect blunting the advantage of nearby gaming palaces in New Jersey and Delaware.

The haul has been considerable. Total revenue from slot machine gambling in Pennsylvania tops $24 billion. You can add another $6 billion from table games. The state added casinos. But it still could not slake its thirst.

That is in part because Republicans who control both houses of the Legislature have consistently looked at any plan for a new tax hike as something akin to anathema.

Gov. Tom Wolf rode to the governor’s mansion on a pledge to increase education spending, including deep cuts that took place under his Republican predecessor, Gov. Tom Corbett.

But to do that Wolf needed revenue. His idea? A new severance tax on the state’s Marcellus Shale gas drilling industry. Republicans had opposed the idea, instead opting for what Corbett referred to as an “impact fee.” It has brought in millions, but not as much as a severance tax would.

At one point, Wolf actually floated the notion of increasing both the state sales and personal income tax to bankroll his spending plans. Republicans almost laughed themselves silly.

Running for re-election this year, Wolf largely dropped his tax hike plans and suggested more modest spending increases.

But the need for more revenue remained.

Voila? Can you say more legal gambling, this time in truck stops and airports. Much like Vegas, Pennsylvania can now get you coming and going.

Want to wage online? Like the idea of not having to leave your house or get out of your pajamas to blow this month’s rent or mortgage? You have a friend in Pennsylvania.

Last but not least, there is the “Field of Dreams” for Pennsylvania bettors. That would be legal sports wagering. That too was given the green light by our legislators. And again casinos have not exactly rushed to the betting window to plunk down the stiff fees the state wants to slap on them for the privilege of raking in money on NFL and other pro sports contests.

So far Parx in Bucks County, the largest of the state’s 12 casinos, is one of only two gaming outlets to seek a license. The other is Penn National near Harrisburg.

The competition for state gambling dollars has gotten so intense that casinos are now biting the hand that feeds it, in a manner of speaking.

Casinos aren’t going after bettors, instead they’re suing the state, alleging that plans for online lottery sales are illegal.

No doubt Pennsylvania soon will find itself in need of additional revenue. And just as sure as the run rising in the East, legislators no doubt will consider some new type of wagering to separate Pennsylvanians from their money.

In fact, you can bet the house on it.