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A bill to allow the city of Petersburg to hold a referendum for a casino and ban Virginia's state capital of Richmond from holding a second vote for five years has been killed by a Senate committee, to the surprise of the measure’s sponsor who plans to revive his proposal.
The Senate Finance and Appropriations Committee in Virginia voted 9-7 late Thursday (February 10) to kill Senate Bill 203 authored by Senator Joe Morrissey, a Democrat.
The bill would have prevented Richmond or any city which votes against a casino referendum from holding a second referendum for five years. Richmond voters in November 2021 rejected the initial plan by a margin of 51 to 49 percent.
The Richmond City Council last month approved plans to have a second casino referendum in November to establish a casino in Virginia’s capital city.
The resolution adopted on January 24 re-selected Urban One as Richmond’s casino development partner, nominated the same site as last year for the project, and ratified a community host agreement for the facility.
Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney renewed his support for the casino development during his state of the city speech on February 8, noting that it would generate $560m in capital investment without costing the city “a dime.”
Upon approval by voters through a second referendum in November, Stoney said the tax revenue from the casino would allow the city to provide a two-cent reduction in the real-estate tax to taxpayers.
“This project is about the people of Richmond,” Stoney said. “It’s about providing security, relief, jobs, and investment which leads to a brighter future for the entire city.”
Morrissey was unavailable for comment on Friday, but told the Richmond Times-Dispatch after the committee vote that he was “thunderstruck as to what occurred” and will try to review his bill.
A similar proposal, House Bill 1134, introduced by Republican Delegate Kim Taylor, adds Petersburg to the current list of five Virginia cities eligible to host a casino and would impose a five-year ban on holding additional local referendums from the date of the last vote.
Taylor on Thursday urged a House General Laws subcommittee to adopt the measure. She said with an unemployment rate of 13.9 percent, the city of Petersburg some 25 miles south of Richmond is in “desperate need of economic development.”
“We have been faced with our share of financial challenges,” Petersburg Mayor Samuel Parham told the subcommittee. “Over the last five years, we went from a $17m deficit to a $12m surplus. We need this to put us on sound financial footing.”
Despite testimony from supporters and opponents on Thursday, the subcommittee voted unanimously to decide the bill’s fate at another meeting after Republican Delegate Jeffrey Campbell requested more time to study the proposal.
The debate over the siting of a fifth casino in Virginia is one of several gambling measures in focus as lawmakers start the second half of their two-month 2022 legislative session, which will conclude on March 12.
Two other bills filed in the Virginia General Assembly would tweak the state’s 2020 sports-betting law.
Delegate Mark Sickles, a Democrat, filed House Bill 1103 that would prevent online sports-betting operators from deducting bonuses and promotional credits from taxable revenue after 12 months of operation.
Operators would also no longer be able to carry forward losses from one month to offset taxes owed in others.
Sickles introduced his bill on January 12, and it was referred to the Committee on General Laws, but no votes have been taken on the legislation.
Currently, DraftKings is offering a sign-up bonus in Virginia that is worth up to $1,050 and includes a $1,000 deposit bonus and $50 free bet. Barstool is offering a risk-free $1,000 bet for opening a wagering account in Virginia, along with a $10 free money bonus just for signing up.
WynnBET and DraftKings both declined to comment on the legislation.
If the bill becomes law, operators could decide to reduce or eliminate the lucrative bonuses and promotional credits they offer to engage with potential customers.
Mobile wagering launched in Virginia last January. The Virginia Lottery has so far issued 11 operator licenses, and two temporary permits, while currently reviewing an additional three operators with permits expected to be awarded during the first half of 2022.
The Virginia Lottery completed its first full year of mobile sports betting on December 31 by surpassing $3.2bn in handle, with gross revenue of $285.9m but taxable net revenue of $130.9m. Promotions and bonus costs were $122.1m, with other deductions including federal excise taxes totaling $32.9m.
Total taxes collected in 2021 were $20.3m, the Virginia Lottery said. Mobile sports betting is taxed at 15 percent of adjusted revenues in Virginia.
The Senate Finance and Appropriations Committee advanced Senate Bill 576 on Thursday that would allow bets on in-state college programs, even though the House General Laws subcommittee already voted to kill a companion bill.
The bill would allow Virginians to bet on the University of Virginia and other in-state colleges. The 2020 law allows college betting but not for games involving Virginian schools.
When Virginia first legalized sports wagering in 2020, the Senate passed a bill to allow betting on Virginia colleges before accepting the ban proposed in the House's version of the legislation.
“The proposed legislation is expected to increase wager activity, which would increase sports betting revenues,” John Hagerty, a spokesman with the Virginia Lottery, told VIXIO GamblingCompliance.
“However, the expected increase in sports-betting revenues cannot be determined at this time because some wagering may transition from other currently allowable wager types, and the program is still in very early stages of development,” Hagerty said.
Meanwhile, a bill to ban use of the phrase “Virginia is for Bettors” in any sports-betting advertisements was overwhelmingly approved by the Senate last week. Senate Bill 96 now moves to the House of Delegates for consideration.
Republican Senate Minority Leader Tommy Norment Jr. originally introduced a bill that would have prohibited sportsbook operators from using “Virginia” or “the Commonwealth” in their advertising before the measure was amended in committee to ban only the twist on the state's official motto, “Virginia is for lovers.”
Businesses violating the ban would face a fine of up to $50,000.
