Slot Machines are now "Legal" in Kentucky
Gambling has been a complicated issue in Kentucky due to a constitutional restriction against it; however, some say that our current interpretations of that may be wrong. Either way the Kentucky Horse Industry had been operating what they call Historical Horse Racing (slot machines). This past year the Kentucky Supreme Court ruled it unconstitutional. So, some in the state legislature decided to pass a bill (SB 120) to make the definition of the slot machines legal by changing some definitions (at least legal for now, we are sure there will be another court case). Some people voted for it because it was already a job for people and they didn't want to take jobs away, others voted for it because the Horse Industry needs saving and the slot machines will infuse it with cash to keep it afloat (if your industry is dependent upon cash from another industry, it has bigger systemic problems that need addressing), and others voted for it for the tax revenue (albeit the rate is extremely low). However one thing is clear, this was Crony Capitalism. We hear at KLR love the horses and the Derby as much as the next Kentuckian, but creating an industry solely for another to control and benefit from is not Free Market Capitalism. Republicans actually passed this?! Now Kentucky has the two types of gambling (pending Governor Beshear's likely signature) that results in the least likely opportunity to win, the Lottery and Slot Machines....excuse us Historical Horse Racing, while other forms of gambling that require some skill and an opportunity to have a winner like sports betting or table games are likely not to happen, unless of course we can find a way to give exclusive rights to the Horse Industry.
#Gambling #SlotMachines #HistoricalHorseRacing #HHR #DamonThayer #CronyCapitalism #2021GeneralAssembly #KentuckyHorseIndustry