Much-discussed lottery and gambling legislation in the 2025 legislative session has “too few votes to pass,” according to State Sen. President Pro-Tem Garlan Gudger (R-Cullman).
Gudger said legislation by State Sen. Greg Albritton (R-Range) was “simply too little, too late.”
“With 12 meeting days remaining in the session, both budgets still awaiting approval, and other important bills and measures demanding focus and attention, the comprehensive gaming bill released today is simply too little, too late, and has too few votes to pass,” Gudger said in a statement on Thursday. “I believe that passing a comprehensive gaming bill in the Senate will require engaging in long-term and intense negotiations among members and securing the needed votes and commitments well before a legislative session even begins.”
A gambling and lottery constitutional amendment fell one vote short of passing the Senate in 2024 after passing the House. The issue had been brought up continually in media reports and in the hallways of the State House by lobbyists, but it was never officially filed in bill form in the 2025 legislative session.
Albritton's proposal reportedly included sports betting, a lottery, six Class II casinos and a compact with the Poarch Creek Indians.
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