Friday, May 2, 2003 | 10 a.m.
TOPEKA, Kan. -- A bill that would legalize slot machines in Kansas won tentative approval Thursday in the House, but not before members decorated the bill with an array of amendments.
A final vote is scheduled for today. If approved as expected, the measure will go to the Senate, where its reception will be guarded.
Before the bill was approved, amendments were attached to provide money for such things as a buffalo park, a children's emergency shelter, teacher salaries and the judicial system.
"It's ugly, but at least it's something to work with in the Senate," said Rep. John Ballou, a Gardner Republican who sponsored the slot-machine portions of the bill.
House members voted 65-57 to advance the bill to a final vote today. In the House, 63 votes are required for passage.
A top aide to Gov. Kathleen Sebelius, Jeremy Anderson, said the governor was excited there was discussion on a gaming issue and that there will be a vote.
Expanding gaming to include slot machines has been a key part of Sebelius' plans for dealing with the state's $254 million shortfall.
Ballou, who estimated that slot machines could bring in as much as $150 million a year to the state, said he wasn't worried about the amendments to the bill because "there's no way the Senate would leave all this junk on it."
As the three-hour debate neared its end, an exasperated Ballou, his voice rising, told the House: "We've been playing games with this bill. It's time to get it out of here and over to the Senate."
When the debate ended, supporters were unsure just how much money would go to operators of the slot-machine casinos or to the state general fund.
"We probably allocated 123 percent of the money, depending on how the amendments were written," said Majority Leader Clay Aurand, a Courtland Republican.
Aurand authored a successful amendment that stripped 2 percent from the operator's share to be used as part of the financing of the state Capitol renovation project.
"There's no way of telling how much money it's going to bring in," said House Speaker Doug Mays, a Topeka Democrat. "This bill has got a long way to go. It's got to get by (Senate) President (Dave) Kerr."
Kerr, a Hutchinson Republican, has not supported expanded gaming.
So many amendments were offered that at one point Mays went to the microphone, tongue in cheek, and said his daughter's school needed a gymnasium. He offered an amendment to provide 1 percent of the money to the Topeka Lutheran School. It failed, and a grinning Mays went back to his seat.
One amendment siphoned off 25 percent of the money to be used to enhance teacher salaries. Another 25 percent was allocated to the judicial branch.
Slot machines would be allowed in counties where there is a state-licensed pari-mutuel track. The Woodlands horse and dog racing operations in Wyandotte County would be one of the prime locations.
In addition, slot machines would be allowed in Ford County, probably in Dodge City, and in Geary County, where Junction City is the largest city.
First, voters in the respective counties would have to approve at an election.
The state would receive up to 30 percent of the slot machine profits, depending on how much revenue they take in.
Among those who opposed the legislation was Rep. Eric Carter, an Overland Park Republican, who warned that spending at casinos would harm other entertainment venues.
"There are gaming measures I can support, but this isn't one of them," he said. "When you're spending money at tracks, you're not spending money on other things."
Rep. Bill Mason, an El Dorado Republican, warned House members: "It is not a good deal for Kansas. It's a terrible deal."
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