The Alabama state legislature is still waiting on the formal introduction of a bill to bring brick and mortar casinos and the lottery to the state, but that did not stop Gov. Kay Ivey used her annual State of the State address to back the effort.
Towards the beginning of her speech, Ivey had the following to say about the matter:
“This year, when Alabamians make their way to the ballot box, I hope they will be voting on another issue: Gaming,” said Ivey. “I believe the current proposal being contemplated by the Legislature is good for Alabama, and I will be carefully watching it move through the process. It will crack down on illegal gambling, and it will responsibly regulate limited forms of legal gaming, including a statewide lottery. Thank you to Speaker Ledbetter and his leadership team for their hard work on this. Now is the time for Alabama voters to have another say on this issue.”
The issue of gambling last came before state voters in 1999 when a proposed lottery failed to pass.
This session, Rep. Chris Blackshear plans to introduce a bill that would create both a state lottery and a limited number of casinos. He said the intent would be to file the bill on Wednesday but that the filing is still a moving target.
If and when a bill is introduced, Alabama lawmakers would need to pass the measure in each chamber by a three-fifths margin and, even then, it would need approval from the voters during this fall’s election before the matter would be passed into law.
