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If there is one thing everyone in Pennsylvania can agree on, it is that a decision needs to be made one or another on skill games that are found in social clubs and businesses throughout the state.
Of course, we can't agree on that decision, hence the stalemate on the issue with a court-imposed Oct. 13 deadline for law enforcement to begin removing unlicensed skill games. What's even more frustrating is lawmakers' inability to bring legislation to a vote that would simply preserve the status quo to give lawmakers more time to dilly dally their way to a decision.
Take, for example, the legislative calendar for Sept. 29, with 15 calendar days and even fewer days when the state Legislature is actually in session. The state House of Representatives spent a voting day on: open primaries, panic alarms in schools, legislation helping drivers with communication impairments, requiring consideration of the public interest in Pennsylvania Utility Corporation proceedings, renaming a bridge, child welfare providers’ liability, contributions for the deaf and hard of hearing community, modernizing fingerprinting and background check requirements for horse racing, licensing of home inspectors. The Senate, meanwhile, voted on legislation establishing an Office of Employee Ownership, a local tax credit for fire sprinklers in First Class cities, modernizing the Local Tax Enabling Act to address delinquent tax collection and legislation to ensure consistency in local and county tax collections.
Some of those bills are necessary. Others are partisan bills that stand no chance in the other side of the legislature. And some are quick bills that everyone agrees upon as a matter of courtesy. But none are particularly time sensitive.
There have been enough skill game extension bills introduced in recent weeks – from both Republicans and Democrats – that an extension shouldn't come down to the wire. There should be no ambiguity on Oct. 12 for those who currently have skill games in their establishment that police officers or gaming authorities are going to come to their door on Oct. 13 to seize the machines. But that is exactly what will happen, because the time to pass an extension that preserves the status quo is ticking away quickly.
It's frustrating that the legislature can't come up with a policy that preserves skill games for social clubs or fire departments who rely on the revenue. Frustrating doesn't come close to describing how it feels to watch lawmakers be unable to schedule a vote on legislation that simply kicks the can down the road another six months.
This is a preventable mess of the legislature's own making.