VCC Summer-Fall 2021

V irginia C apitol C onnections , S ummer /F all 2021 10 I Thought I’d Seen It All By RICHARD L. SASLAW In March 2020, as we were winding down the General Assembly, the COVID-19 pandemic made its presence felt throughout the world and in our Commonwealth. The raging virus forced life as we knew it to come to a screeching halt, crushed individual livelihoods across various industry sectors, shuttered our schools, and pressured healthcare institutions. Simultaneously, we learned how to embrace a virtual world, fend for ourselves when the US government necessitated it, and recognized the importance of science and data- driven decisions. Virginia was well positioned to address the biggest public health crisis in a century with Dr. Ralph Northam at the gubernatorial helm. Over 11,500 Virginians have succumbed to the infection, more than 31,000 cases were treated in our hospitals, and close to 800,000 individuals tested positive. With the swearing in of President Biden, Americans were given a pathway for protection, prevention, and hope of a better future. To date, Vaccinate Virginia has delivered over 9.5 million doses of the FDA-approved vaccines and saved countless lives. The 2020 General Assembly was a session of “firsts.” Jefferson never told me I’d one day be conducting committee meetings over Zoom or sitting in a plexiglass box.We went virtual, (sometimes viral) and had floor sessions away from the Capital as tumbleweeds blew through the halls of the Pocahontas Building. The passing of Senator Ben Chafin and Capitol Police Master Officer Woodrow “Buddy” Dowdy brought home the realness and tragedy of the pandemic. We convened at the Science Museum for close to 151 days in 2020 – as close as you can come to not being a “part time” legislature. “You’re on mute,” was often the phrase of the day. From my seat, the 2021 General Assembly was a déjà vu that included pages from the same Republican political playbook we see across the Potomac. In the absence of having the votes, be obstructionists. Virginia was fortunate to operate in the black throughout the pandemic on a reduced-spending plan. Federal funds kept many people from the bread lines and our localities functioning. On August 2, we returned to the State Capitol for another Special Session. We have billions of dollars to dispense in ARPA funds along with billions to reallocate in our biennial budget – hence another Special Session. It should come as no surprise, Senate Democrats intend to make strategic investments with ARPA funds: broadband, stormwater infrastructure, schools, small business support, and a replenishment of unemployment benefits. State revenue will be reserved for ongoing sustainable programs. Temperance is critical. This exercise should not resemble the spending habits of sailors coming to port after a long stretch on the sea. That brings us to a look at 2022, when several laws will be revisited and tweaked from the previous sessions. Election Day this November 2 will bring new players to the executive stage. Add in the work of the Redistricting Commission and it is probable we will soon be having this same Groundhog Day experience. Richard Lawrence Saslaw has served as the Majority Leader of the Senate of Virginia since 2020. A member of the Democratic Party, he served in the Virginia House of Delegates from 1976–80, before being elected to the Senate of Virginia. Thank you, Chairman Krezik. Today, we embark on the very important work of this subcommittee in trying to fix a regulatory framework for Electronic Gaming Devices and charitable gaming in the Commonwealth of Virginia that currently is broken. I want to thank my colleagues, most of whom had to endure the onslaught of emails and questions as it pertains to charitable gaming. Unfortunately, as I speak to you at this very moment, thousands of illegal gambling devices are flooding into the commonwealth backfilling the void left by electronic “grey” games. It is our duty to root them out. We must be committed to the task of creating an environment that both protects our small businesses and charities from an unscrupulous illegal gaming industry, and provides a safe and legal environment for those that chose to partake in this type of gaming in the future. When I proposed Senate Bill 1127 during the 2021 Special Session I of theVirginia General Assembly, I did so with one purpose in mind: To organize the charitable gaming framework in order to protect legitimate charities in Virginia from being taken advantage of by illegal gambling interests. Prior to the introduction of my legislation, we had a fairly functioning regulatory framework for skill games in Virginia that protected the gaming consumer and provided over 130 million dollars in tax revenue. While there existed some gaps with regard to absolute enforcement, it did provide the much-needed governmental oversight required in the industry to ensure its legitimacy, and was simple and easy to implement and enforce. It either had a tax sticker, or it did not. If it did not, it was illegal. Senator Bryce Reeves’ Speech to the Joint Committee of General Laws and Technology Gaming Subcommittee Because of the massive proliferation of charitable games in locations where they were NEVER intended to be placed, we find ourselves here today. Many of my colleagues, both Republicans and Democrats, believe that we have a real problem with electronic gaming in Virginia. Because of that grave concern, the Virginia Legislature included language in the state’s budget that when the skill games ban took effect, there would be no “ additional physical devices authorized for either charitable or fantasy interests…prior to June 21, 2022. ” No additional physical devices meant exactly that. When I argued for the passage of my bill on the Senate floor, I warned my colleagues and fellow Virginians that when we removed the one regulatory system that governed the electronic games in the Commonwealth in the banning of skill games, and did not immediately replace it with another, nor protect the essence of charitable gaming, that we would see a “wild west” environment of unregulated chaos ensue.We created a giant void that would be filled with illegal games and so-called “charitable Video Game Terminals (VGT’s)” in the spaces where the once-regulated skill games operated legally. I warned and predicted that a pervasive criminal element would emerge in this void that would take advantage of consumers, small businesses, and our local and state charities, and there would be NO TAX REVENUE for Virginia and its localities nor monies going to legitimate charities. It pains me to say I was right. Ladies and Gentlemen, there is a potentially devastating and fast- spreading cancer that has resulted from our actions by removing one gaming industry, and not having the regulatory protections, stronger enforcement, and accountability in place prior to taking the action of killing skill games. Those additional protections, enforcement, and accountability are critical to the survivability of the charitable gaming world. Why do I say this? In a little over three weeks from the July 1st ban taking effect, we have seen, across the Commonwealth: V