COLUMBIA, S.C. — The Palmetto Forum for Gaming Studies met with lawmakers this week in Myrtle Beach to discuss potential legalized gambling.
The nonpartisan organization is taking a closer look at both the negative and positive impact of the industry for the state, according to its website.
The Forum is chaired by Dr. Jim Rex, a former state superintendent of education, and Converse Chellis, a former state treasurer and state lawmaker, according to the same website.
WLTX reached out to some of Richland County's state lawmakers to see if they think it's worth rolling the dice on gambling legalization.
“We've got to consider gambling as a funding source. We've got a beautiful gem of an area called Myrtle Beach. It's right on the coast of South Carolina and people come there by the thousands, come there by the millions and since I've been a child it's been difficult to get to. We need highway 20 to come there and one of the ways we can work on doing that is allowing upscale casino gambling to come to the Myrtle Beach area,” said Democrat Todd Rutherford, representing Richland County.
Rutherford is the minority leader and supports legalization. He added that it's an untapped revenue source.
With the lottery tax revenue already in use in South Carolina, Rutherford continued that there is still more work to do.
“Education being first and foremost, our infrastructure being first and foremost, being one of those that's right up there at the top as well. Because we've got, again, pressing needs that need funding in order to make them happen,” Rutherford said.
The minority leader also expressed concern that the state was the only group in the gambling game, with the lottery, and that there was not independent competition. He also said that it would be a so-called ‘voluntary’ tax for those whom decide to gamble, targeting mostly visitors.
“We increased education spending 300 million dollars in the House budget last year. Some of that came from the lottery, but a lot of it came from general fund money. General fund money that needs to be spent on infrastructure, general fund money that needs to be spent on HIV/AIDS funding, and other needs that are out there that everybody would acknowledge that we have to spend money on. But again, it's also about giving consumers a choice,” Rutherford said.
Across the aisle, Republican Richland representative Kirkman Finlay is not thrilled with the idea.
“We're creating the ability for people to lose money in ways that they probably shouldn't anyway,” Finlay said at his office Wednesday.
Finlay cited addiction and debt concerns and said the tax revenue is not worth it, “I worry about it,” he said.
“Generating tax dollars is not a moral imperative to do other things that you wouldn't normally do,” Finlay added.
Not to mention, with a majority in both chambers, Finlay said don't bet on legalized gambling.
“I haven't heard a word. So, I'm going to say we aren't thinking about it. That is my opinion. Until you called - until [WLTX] called me today, the amount I had thought about legalizing gambling was zero. After we get done with this interview, the amount I'm going to think about legalizing gambling is zero. And that's where I think it's going to go, zero,” Finlay finished.
The Richland Republican said there was no "appetite” on his side of the aisle to consider legalizing gambling next year.
Several 2019 bills urging studies or resolutions in support of gaming, sports betting, and other gambling sit in committee. They’ll get another roll of the dice when the General Assembly returns to Columbia in January of 2020.