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Illinois Game Promoters Want Video Gambling in Bars22 May 2002SPRINGFIELD, Illinois – As reported by the Quad-City Times: "Promoters of coin-operated games lobbied lawmakers Tuesday to legalize video gambling in Illinois bars even as anti-gambling groups lashed out against the possibility of gambling expansion. "The gambling advocates said their plan would help the state avoid budget cuts or tax increases. "`Between the riverboats, the tracks and these machines, I think they can solve about all the problems out there without any painful cuts or painful taxes,' said John Neville of Sterling, who is president of the Illinois Coin Machine Operators Association. "…Rick Davis, spokesman for the Coin Machine Operators Association, said lobbyists for his group have been negotiating with Gov. George Ryan and House and Senate legislative leaders about the possibility of including legalized video gambling in a comprehensive budget deal. Estimates are that the state faces a $1.3 billion budget gap…" |