Alabama lawmaker files bill that, if passed, would make electronic bingo illegal – WVUA 23

By WVUA 23 News Reporter Lyric Franklin

An Alabama lawmaker is seeking a resolution to the state’s discombobulated rules surrounding electronic games of chance like slots, electronic bingo or historic horse racing machines: Ban them entirely and increase the penalties for those who don’t comply.

Alabama Rep. Matthew Hammett, who represents House District 92 covering Coffee, Covington and Escambia counties, filed House Bill 41 Sept. 11 ahead of the 2025 Alabama Legislative Session.

You can check out the entirety of the bill right here.

The state’s laws on gambling — and especially on electronic bingo and pari-mutuel horse/dog racing machines — are a convoluted mess, with the state waging a decades-long war against businesses and whole counties who are adamant that they’re on the right side of the law.

In West Alabama, Greene County is home to several electronic bingo or pari-mutuel horse racing facilities. Within the county, these facilities operate as nonprofits and a portion of proceeds are handed over to Greene County Sheriff Joe Benison. That money should then distributed by Benison to Greene County agencies, but several agencies say they haven’t gotten any funding for more than six months.

Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall has been leading the charge against illegal facilities, saying electronic bingo and the like have always been illegal in the state and should not be skirting by on technicalities. It’s been a game of whack-a-mole, with new businesses popping up in new locations just as fast as they’re shut down.

That’s what HB41 is designed to stop, as it would take out any technicalities on what’s OK and what’s not. It would also increase the penalties for gambling-related crimes and make penalties harsher for second and subsequent offenses.

Currently, promoting gambling, possessing a gambling device or conspiracy to promote gambling are Class A misdemeanors. If the bill is passed, they would become Class C felonies for first-time offenses and Class B felonies for third or more offenses.

In Alabama:

• Class A misdemeanors are punishable by a jail time of as long as one year and/or a fine of as much as $6,000
• Class C felonies are punishable by a jail time of at least a year and a day and as long as 10 years and a fine of as much as $15,000
• Class B felonies are punishable by a jail time of at least two years and as long as 20 years and a fine of as much as $30,000

While many state lawmakers and leaders are seeking to crack down on illegal gambling, others are seeking an expansion.

Earlier this year, the Alabama Legislature stalled out by one Senate vote over the passage of a gaming bill that would have brought a lottery funding state education alongside a set number of electronic gambling facilities around the state.

So far, HB41 is the only bill filed for the 2025 Alabama Legislative Session that is related to gambling. Odds are good another attempt at bringing the lottery to the state will be filed by the time the session kicks off early next year.

Alabama Rep. A.J. McCampbell, who represents portions of Marengo, Pickens, Sumter and Tuscaloosa counties, said he believes this bill would prevent jobs and funding from coming into small and under-funded counties.

“It is a killer of small counties that depend on that revenue,” McCampbell said. “It kills jobs in these counties where the state of Alabama has not been interested and put forth any effort to bring viable jobs to these areas.”

McCampbell said his main concern with HB41 is what would replace the money gambling is bringing in to rural counties.

“If you do take these jobs away, how are you going to replace them?” McCampbell said. “What are you willing to do? What are you willing to fight for to help people who don’t have all the benefits of these large cities and huge tax bases?”

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