Gambling Legalization in Georgia: New Casino on the Way?
Posted: February 26, 2021
Updated: February 26, 2021
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Gambling legalization in Georgia is on the table again
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They are already planning to build a casino in Coastal Georgia
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Many could benefit from new legislation
The southern state of Georgia is known for many things. One of them is that they are very strict about their anti-gambling stance. Just like South Carolina, Hawaii, Utah, and Vermont they even prohibit the operation of tribal or commercial casinos and sports betting. For the last five years, quite a few Georgia representatives are working on changing this state. First and foremost, they want gambling legalization in Georgia. It seems like they stand a chance in 2021.
So far gambling advocates have not been able to go through with their legislation propositions. But in 2020 the efforts in legalizing gambling started to thrive. Since that supporters have hope in legalizing sports betting soon – which is said to be the easiest case. They hope that it could lead to further changes in legislation, like considering land-based casinos and online gambling. The latter would be a great deal for online casino sites in the US, like CyberSpins Casino, since Georgia is the 8th biggest state. But almost everyone could benefit from the land-based casinos after gambling legalization in Georgia. They already found the perfect place to start: the small Liberty County town, Midway would make a great place to build the first casino of the state.
How can gambling legalization in Georgia go down?
Georgia representatives have been working for five years to be able to pass legislation on legalizing casino gambling. For this, they must get the two-thirds majority in the Georgia General Assembly. Besides, they need the signature of the governor and voter approval by ballot referendum. According to WTOC.com Representative Al Williams, representing District 168 in the Georgia House of Representative spoke up on the issue. “I will not become a gambler, but I do listen to the people and 70% of the people in Georgia, with comparable numbers in Liberty County, a little higher in Liberty, have said give us the right to vote.” He also assured the parties that the extension of gambling is on the table again, having more and more sponsors.
A new casino in Coastal Georgia would be a great hit
It is no question that opening a casino in Liberty County, Georgia would be a game-changer. If the gambling expansion passes through and the voters also approve it, the life of all Coastal Georgia could be different. Not to mention the place itself in Midway that they already laid eyes on. As Ronald Tolley, the CEO of Liberty County Development Authority said: “You have approximately 85,000 cars per day that pass this location with the I-95 traffic.”. This includes people going on their vacation in Florida. We also have to bear in mind the 30-35 million people living within a 5-hour drive of the location. And these people have never been in a casino in their state!
The benefits of gambling legalization in Georgia
Rick Lackey, who is a commercial real estate executive, believes that the casino could allure 5 to 7 thousand tourists a day. He also looks at the appointed place with the eyes of the operators. And as it is, he says that the site has everything they could possibly look for. So, besides the benefits provided for gamblers, the casino could have a huge economic impact as well. According to Williams: “This could generate revenue of taxes between $3-5 million for Georgia. This is the only major industry we’ll ever be able to recruit that is not asking for tax abatement, they’re not asking for us to give them land. They’re not asking for anything. They’re just bringing 800-1,200 permanent jobs with an average income of $42,000 a year plus benefits.”
What else to expect?
Tolley said: “We’re hoping this year it may be successful because we know it would be a tremendous benefit to the county.” It is true for the new casino since officials believe it would keep money flowing into the state. But obviously, it would be great for online gambling sites in the US too. Online casinos, like CyberSpins Casino, could get more gamblers, who could enjoy the games, as they have never done before.
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