The Virginia Lottery has won the first round in its fight against electronic gaming machines it says are cutting into its sales and
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The Virginia House and the Senate Finance and Appropriations Committee voted last week by large margins to pass bills that would ban
the digital betting games. The House voted 80-15 and the Senate
Committee 14-2 to approve proposals that would see the machines
disappear entirely.
The games "have been detrimental to the lottery," said Senate Minority Leader Tommy Norment, Republican of James City, who cosponsored
the bipartisan Senate bill.There are over 9,000 of the so-called
"skill" games in Virginia. They are not regulated or taxed, and there is
no minimum age requirement for players.
The electronic video games are installed in locations such as restaurants and convenience stores across the state, and their numbers
have grown quickly over the last two years.
They are also called "gray" machines because they operate in a gray area of state law. Operators say they are games of skill, meaning they
are legal under current Virginia law. Critics say they are games of
chance and therefore illegal.
The best-known game is Dragon Ascent. Like a traditional arcade game, it features joysticks and colorful graphics, with players aiming to
shoot dragons that cross the screen. In these games, however, players
can win cash instead of points.
The Virginia Lottery sees the games as a serious direct threat to its revenue, and therefore its ability to contribute to public education in
the state. The Lottery expects to lose $140 million in sales and $40
million in profits this fiscal year. It blames the drop in sales on the
games installed at nearly 2,000 retailers who also sell lottery tickets.
