Proposal for slot machines at airports lands on House floor
State Rep. Nick Kotik’s proposal authorizing slot machines at several airports in Pennsylvania took another step forward and now heads to the House floor.
The House Gaming Oversight Committee folded Kotik’s bill into an internet gaming bill that it then approved in a bipartisan 18-8 vote Wednesday.
“We put something together that would be acceptable to both houses which means it has a better chance of passing,” said Kotik, D-Kennedy Township, Allegheny County, on Thursday. “I’m optimistic it has a reasonable chance of going through.”
Kotik has said that the state’s budget impasse and need for additional revenue could be a favorable factor in convincing legislators that his bill is worthwhile.
At a hearing in Harrisburg last month, Randall Walker, a consultant for Pittsburgh International Airport and the former director of Las Vegas’ McCarran International Airport, told the committee that he would recommend between 250 and 300 slot machines at Pittsburgh International, which would receive 20 percent of net revenues.
Kotik proposed allowing six international airports — Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Harrisburg, Erie, Lehigh Valley and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton — to offer slots in areas for ticketed passengers.
The House returns to session Monday.