Legislators will return to the Illinois state capital on Tuesday, November 16 for a scheduled six-day special session which will include discussion and possible action on a bill which would allow slots a the state’s racetracks
.
There is increasing legislative support for the idea, but governor Pat Quinn is not enthusiastic.
A spokesman said Quinn would work with the General Assembly to examine all revenue raising actions, but “he is not interested in making Illinois the Las Vegas of the midwest.”
A spokeswoman, Kelly Kraft, did not say that Quinn would veto slots at tracks if a bill reached his desk. The principal author of the slots bill being considered, state senator Terry Link, a Waukegan Democrat, said “the mood is there to pass a big bill.”
Sixty votes are normally needed to pass a bill, but 71 are require during a veto session such as
the one this week. House members were told, however, that the 60-vote requirement would return for an eight-day session in early January to consider previously unscheduled bills.
Senator Link said, “We have not reached the gambling saturation point by any means.”
Harness Tracks of America
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