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Senate Co-Sponsorship Memoranda
Senate of Pennsylvania
Session of 2025 - 2026
Regular Session
MEMORANDUM
| Posted: | January 16, 2025 05:14 PM |
|---|---|
| From: | Senator Gene Yaw |
| To: | All Senate members |
| Subject: | Regulating and Taxing Skill Video Games |
| In the near future, I plan on introducing comprehensive legislation to regulate and establish a tax on skill video games in a manner which provides a significant monetary benefit to the Commonwealth. The term “skill video games” refers to the type of games which numerous Pennsylvania courts have determined possess an element of player skill as part of the play in comparison to games of chance where payout is determined by a certain point in the program irrespective of what the player does. As proposed in my legislation, skill video games must be associated with a business or entity unrelated to gaming. As such, skill video games are designed to provide supplemental income to small businesses such as bars, restaurants, fraternal and veterans clubs, and convenience stores. Skill video games are important to these establishments for one very unique reason – they must be played in person, on-premises only during the days and hours the business is open. This is far different from slot machines, which are readily available right in our pockets through our cellphones 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year. Under this legislation, the number of skill video game terminals in each location is restricted to allow for no more than five terminals per establishment and no more than ten terminals per social club. This prohibits so-called gaming parlors and mini-casinos from flooding communities with illegal machines and ensures that the small businesses where true skill video games are located can continue to benefit from the critical revenue they provide. In addition, the legislation will also have provisions for funding law enforcement operations to enforce the law. Regulating and taxing skill video games is estimated to generate $300 million in annual tax revenues. The legislation will direct these funds to be deposited into the Clean Streams Fund to become a funding source for the Agriculture Conservation Assistance Plan (ACAP), which has become one of the most successful programs in reducing pollution from agriculture operations. Previous court decisions have unanimously held that skill video games, as decided by the cases before them, are not within the purview of the Gaming Act in Pennsylvania, thus the Department of Revenue will be authorized with oversight of skill video games. I hope you will join me in co-sponsoring this legislation to preserve the distinction between skill video games and games of chance and rid the market of illegal machines. |
Memo Updated: January 16, 2025 05:15 PM