Virginia lawmakers seek to crack down on illegal gambling
Pace-O-Matic reports spur legislators to act.
Former US Congressman and US Attorney Tom Marino said last Thursday that lawmakers are trying to take disciplinary measures against mini casinos that are not regulated. This is due to reports from developer Pace-O-Matic which found an increase in the number of outlawed skill games offered in Virginia despite the ban on skill game machines.
The ban has been in effect since July 1.
Pace-O-Matic compliance officers Jill Feagan and George Kucik conducted a number of investigations into the matter. According to their findings, potentially rigged games of chance were currently replacing the missing skill games that are no longer available because of the ban.
Prior to the July ban, skill games generated million-dollar revenues as a result of state lawmakers taxing them for a limited time. Marino’s goal has been to see the state take regulatory measures and enforce the law so that illegal operators are forbidden to operate and forced to pay state taxes they owe.
Virginia State Senator and member of General Assembly subcommittee Bryce Reeves have also directed the local police to similar locations operating illegal skill game machines. Reeves was concerned that under-funding and the inability to investigate due to a lack of resources has created an environment for illegal activity to thrive.
Reeves has introduced a bill that would help create a designated State Police team exclusively responsible for criminal enforcement to combat this issue. The bill would follow the example of a similar act that enables county attorneys to take disciplinary measures against outlawed game operators in their jurisdiction. Country attorneys are allowed to issue a $25,000 civil fine per machine.
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