Pennsylvania online gambling is just one step away from becoming a reality, which would make the Keystone State the fourth in America with legal online poker and gambling. The State House passed a sweeping gaming package (H 271) on Thursday by a vote of 109 to 72. That vote came after the bill was amended and passed by the full Senate less than a day earlier. The House actually took up the Pennsylvania web-based gaming bill on Wednesday night, but procedure prevented it from coming up for a vote immediately. The bill still must be signed by Governor Tom Wolf…

Senate Republicans in Pennsylvania now officially have a plan to fill a $2 billion gap in the state budget, after working late into the night on Wednesday. The good news for online gambling proponents is that plan features $200 million in new revenue from a yet-to-be-passed gaming expansion, according to The Associated Press. Any such package which would almost certainly have to include iGaming to generate that much money in the current fiscal year. But there’s not much reason to celebrate quite yet. Republicans said they had a plan to balance the budget on Wednesday, mainly relying on new taxes,…

Pennsylvania state Sen. Jay Costa indicated a vote on a gaming package — one that would legalize online gambling in the state — should take place this week. It’s the latest good sign for a state that has flirted with regulating iGaming for years but has not yet enacted a law. Costa, the Senate minority leader, was taking questions on Twitter on Sunday about the state of budget talks in the state. While lawmakers have agreed on how to spend money for the state budget, they have not yet agreed on how to fund it. One avenue the House and…

LISTED BELOW IS AN EXCERPT FROM AN EDITORIAL ON PHILLY.COM BY OPPONENTS OF ONLINE GAMBLING.AS LEGISLATION GROWS MORE REALISTIC, THESE PEOPLE WILL PLAY ANY CARD THEY HAVE TO STOP IT. THIS WEEK IN GAMBLING HAS PUBLISHED THIS SO THAT OUR READERS ARE EDUCATED ON THE PROPAGANDA OF THESE PEOPLE. Online gaming in Pennsylvania, currently under consideration in Harrisburg, may cannibalize traditional gaming. Extensive brick-and-mortar cannibalization already happened in New Jersey years back and recent reports suggest land-based casino floors saw a decrease in take in April, 2017 compared with April, 2016. Some data suggest that visit-trips to Atlantic City itself…

Representatives of the state’s casinos will meet on January 3 to discuss the gambling law. Senator Kim Ward, R-Westmoreland, announced that she set up a meeting with representatives of the state’s 12 casinos on the same day that lawmakers are supposed to discuss the new legislative session. The closed-door meeting will take place in the Capitol on January 3. According to the American Gaming Association, Pennsylvania’s casino industry is the number one in tax revenue, and a recent measure that says that the casino host fee is unconstitutional is jeopardising the relationship between the state casinos and the communities. The…

Next week, Pennsylvania lawmakers in the House Gaming Oversight Committee will take another look at regulated online gaming for the Keystone State. The hearing would add to the growing list of meetings on the proposal. The bill has been discussed more than 50 separate times since the start of 2015, according to Pennsylvania Rep. John Payne, sponsor of the legislation. Pennsylvania’s House approved internet betting by a 114-85 vote in late June. The measure has sat in the Senate since then with no action. Governor Tom Wolf would have the measure on his desk if Senate lawmakers sign off on…