Ohio Lottery Commission Votes for Gambling Expansion Push

The Ohio Lottery Commission has successfully voted to reach legislation for the incorporation of slot machines into Ohio’s racetracks. Although this is only a preliminary vote and does not guarantee that slot machines will be allowed in the seven racetracks around the state, these first steps have delighted those who have been in favor of this move.

Many important rules have been left out of this preliminary plan. However, it is a solid framework for the future of racetrack slots. As in the case of the process of incorporating casinos into the state of Ohio, this process will probably take a long time as it is still to be determined how many machines will be permitted and how much tax should go to the state from the machines’ revenue.

The reason for the quest for slot games in the racetracks is due to the great shortfall in revenue for the budget in the following two years which has been anticipated to be in the region of $8 billion. The slots are estimated to bring in more than $900 million in revenue but this could possibly suffer once the state’s four casinos are built and operating. Ohio online casinos have yet to be legalized but should online slots be regulated it would not face such complications.