Odds Looking Long For Casino Bill in Georgia

ATLANTA, GA — All bets are off on casino gambling in Georgia.

A preliminary vote on a bill that would legalize casinos in the state has been scrapped, with at least some lawmakers saying the odds for the bill's passage don't look very good.

Senate Bill 79, by Sen. Brandon Beach, R-Alpharetta, had been scheduled for a vote in the Senate Regulated Industries Committee on Thursday.

But, late Wednesday, that committee's chairman notified members that the hearing was canceled.

The legislation would allow voters to approve two resort-style casinos in Georgia. One would be in metro Atlanta and the other around Savannah, on the Georgia coast.

As part of the legislation, the casinos would generate revenue for Georgia's HOPE scholarship and other higher education funding, as well as money for rural health care and broadband technology.

A member of the Regulated Industries committee told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that Thursday's hearing was canceled because the bill didn't have enough support in the committee to pass. It must be approved in committee before going before the full Senate for a vote.

That senator said the bill is "sounding pretty dead," the AJC reported.

Beach told the paper he's hopeful a vote could be rescheduled for as early as Monday and that he believes he can rally enough support for it. He said he think the plan has more support in the Senate as a whole than it does in the committee.

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