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The Illinois Senate and House of Representatives passed a new gambling bill last week. This bill would allow gaming providers to build more casinos throughout the state. Governor Pat Quinn initially said that he doesn’t feel inclined to legalize online gambling because the concept was too new. However, he has neither signed nor vetoed the bill and shows no inclination to do so in the near future.
Sources state that Quinn is not going to make a decision because of a dispute he has had with the General Assembly on the future of pension reform. Quinn has recently stated that he is considering the potential benefits of expanding gambling in Illinois. He said he may be willing to sign the new gaming bill, but will not do so until pension reform is addressed.
The new legislation would create approximately $150 million in revenue. Quinn feels that is a good start, but feels that the bill needs to do more. He may be more open to signing the bill if lawmakers revise it to generate more revenue to fix the state’s pension problem. Some critics said signing that the current legislation would be much better than quibbling over these details.
Some lawmakers are still trying to encourage Quinn to reconsider his position on online gambling. They believe that legalizing online gambling would generate considerably more revenue which could go a long way to fixing the state’s pension problem.
However, Quinn wants to see the implications of online gambling in another state before he decides whether or not to pursue it. He acknowledged that three other states have passed online gambling bills and may be watching developments closely before making a decision.
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