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Chicago May Turn Wave of Illinois Video Gambling Bans
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS --
If Chicago Mayor Richard Daley changes his stance and allows video gambling machines at area bars, it might be the turning point Illinois Governor Pat Quinn needs to save his infrastructure bill.. Quinn had pushed through the state legislature a bill permitting communities to make their own decisions on video gaming last year.
Quinn estimated that most municipalities would accept the new gambling machines, allowing the state to create the revenue necessary to fund a multi-billion dollar road-and-school construction measure. But towns and counties have been rejecting the video gambling, each wanting to partake of the proceeds, but only if they were earned elsewhere.
But Greg Goldner, Daley's close friend and former campaign manager, is asking the Chicago City Council to let the video gambling devices operate inside city limits. If the suggestion is approved, over 15,000 games could appear at Chicago establishments serving alcohol.
Now, the sixty local governments that have opted out of hosting video gambling no longer have snowballing momentum going into other debates. Chicago, by itself, would more than offset the lost revenue from other bans.
"Anything that's going to get people back to work in Illinois, we think, is a good thing," Sheila O'Grady told the Chicago Sun-Times. O'Grady is not only the president of the Illinois Restaurant Association, but also Daley's former chief of staff.
"Illinois needs revenue, and Illinois needs jobs," said O'Grady. " It might help some restaurants stay open."
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