The Florida House bill that would grant three licenses to developers looking to build South Florida resorts has been killed, at least for the time being. The House Business and Consumer Affairs committee postponed a vote rather than voting it down, which theoretically keeps the bill alive but makes it extremely unlikely it will go anywhere this legislative session.
Adding to that perception is a news release from House Rules Committee Chairman Gary Aubuchon saying that "as long as I am the Chairman of the House Rules Committee, this bill will not be withdrawn from any committees and is dead for this year."
As far as we know, Aubuchon is still chairman of the House Rules Committee, and the bill
is still dead.
The Senate's version of the bill, sponsored by Fort Lauderdale Sen. Ellyn Bogdanoff, will likely sit in committee now that the House has failed to pass its version. The legislation had its fair share of opponents, including the Florida Chamber of Commerce, the Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association, and the Florida Retail Federation.
The Fort Lauderdale City Commission got in on the action too, passing a resolution last month "urging" the legislature to reject the gaming bill for several reasons including, "our community will bear the severe and painful economic and social costs that always accompany expansive gambling, including the misery of individuals and families touched by problem gambling as they are at higher risk of divorce, bankruptcy, child abuse, domestic violence, crime, and suicide."
Check out the full text below and a Pulp analysis of the resolution here:
