What's happening
Writing a plain-English summary… Track this bill to get it by email.
Why it matters
Albany, before your first meeting.
Every bill that moved yesterday, summarized in a sentence and ranked by impact. The Albany Scorecard follows on Sundays.
Free. Unsubscribe in one click. Want alerts on specific bills? Create an account.
Who cares
Headline styles
Sponsors
Senator · Senate District 42
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Substituted by A9556
- Ordered to third reading cal.367
- To attorney-general for opinion
- Referred to rules
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
Authorizes casino gambling within the state as prescribed by the legislature
Passed Senate · Sponsor J. Gary Pretlow
Full text
The text isn't available here yet. Check nysenate.gov.
Sponsor's memo
BILL NUMBER:S6734
Title of bill
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION OF THE SENATE AND ASSEMBLY proposing an amendment to subdivision 1 of section 9 of article 1 of the constitution, in relation to casino gambling in the state
Purpose
Provides for the authorization of commercial casino gambling in New York State.
Summary of provisions
Article 1, Section 9 of the State Constitution would be amended to allow no more than seven casinos as authorized and prescribed by the legisla- ture.
Existing law
Article 1, Section 9 of the State Constitution generally proscribes all gambling except for four exceptions. These four exceptions are: (1) pari-mutuel wagering on horse racing; (2) State lotteries; (3) bingo conducted by certain charitable, non-profit and religious organizations; and (4) games of chance conducted by these same charitable, non-profit, and religious organizations.
Justification
Casino gaining has significant potential to be a major economic engine for New York State and the fact is that gaming already exists throughout the State but the State is unable to fully capitalize on it. Native Americans have five casinos and there are nine racinos at the racetracks in New York State. In fact, New York State now has more than 29,000 electronic gambling machines - More than Atlantic City, and more than any state in the Northeast or Midwest.
New York State is also surrounded by gambling. States and Canadian prov- inces just across the State's borders have legalized casino gambling and they are the beneficiaries of the tourism, revenue, and good jobs that could be in New York.
It is estimated that over $1 billion of economic activity can be gener- ated from casino gaming and passing a Constitutional amendment would allow New York to maximize opportunities. Limiting casino gambling to between three and eight facilities guarantees there will not be an excessive proliferation of casinos within New York State.
Legislative history
Over the past 40 years, numerous resolutions have been introduced to amend the Constitution in New York State to authorize commercial casino gambling. None of these proposals have achieved the required second passage by the legislature and have never been subject to a vote of the electorate. In 2011, Assembly Bill No.3293/Senate Bill No. 3326, Assem- bly Bill No. 3605/Senate Bill No. 3327, and Assembly Bill No. 6753 were introduced to authorize casino gambling. None of the bills were acted on.
Budget implications
There are no immediate budget implications since the Constitutional amendment cannot go into effect until January 1, 2014. Future budget implications would depend on the enabling legislation that would accom- pany passage of the amendment.
Effective date
Constitutional amendments require the passage of a concurrent resolution by two separately elected Legislatures and subsequent approval by the voters. As a result, the amendment could not take effect until January 1, 2014.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.