Virginia governor vetoes bill to legalise skill games
Governor Abigail Spanberger has rejected Senate Bill 661.
US.- Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger has vetoed Senate Bill 661, which sought to legalise electronic skill gaming devices in the state. She said that SB 661 would strain an already fragmented system and introduce more machines without a comprehensive regulatory structure.
The governor pointed to data collected by the Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority (ABC) during the period when skill games were allowed to operate legally in the state between 2020 and 2021. She said this illustrates a concentration of machines in communities with higher percentages of residents living below the poverty line, from minorities and with lower education levels.
She said in a statement: “The absence of a centralized regulatory authority for gaming creates gaps in oversight that threaten the Commonwealth of Virginia’s ability to provide consistent enforcement, prevent illicit activity, and protect all consumers. Right now, legalising skill gaming and introducing more of these machines into our communities would strain an already fragmented system. Legalising these machines at this moment would also reward operators who knowingly disregarded state law for years and set a troubling precedent for how business is conducted in Virginia.
“Moving forward, I will continue to engage in discussions with the General Assembly about how to make sure any expansion of legal gaming in Virginia prioritises the well-being of all our communities.”
