Rep. Eiland, two others file gambling amendment

State Rep. Craig Eiland and two colleagues in the Texas Legislature filed a bill late last week calling for a constitutional amendment vote on legalizing casino gambling.

That bill was filed about the same time as a pair of House and Senate joint resolutions calling for a constitutional amendment vote on legalizing video slot machines at horse and dog racing tracks.

Authors of those bills, state Sen. Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa, a Democrat from McAllen, and state Rep. Beverly Woolley, a Houston Republican, also filed corresponding enabling legislation proposing in detail how video slot machines would be operated at horse and dog tracks if voters approved a constitutional amendment.

The Galveston Chamber of Commerce said the organization was monitoring all the bills, but leaders there doubted any had the legislative support needed to pass.

While limiting gambling to slot machines at horse and dog tracks would benefit Gulf Greyhound Park in La Marque, interests in Galveston have in the past treated such attempts as a threat.

The competing bills highlight the rifts even among those advocating for an expansion of legalized gambling in Texas, one local observer said.

Eiland, a Democrat from Galveston, along with state Sen. Rodney Ellis, a Houston Democrat, and state Rep. Jose Menendez, a San Antonio Democrat, on Friday filed House Joint Resolution 112, which would let Texans vote whether they wanted to allow casino gambling in Texas.

A constitutional amendment should be approved before pursuing specific enabling legislation, Eiland argued Monday.

“Filing or discussing enabling legislation is a pointless distraction from the issue at hand,” Eiland said. “Gov. Perry has repeatedly stated publicly that he would veto any bill that would expand gambling in Texas.

“I have been around here long enough to know that when Gov. Perry says he will veto a bill, it is a promise, not a threat.”

Passing a constitutional amendment bill first would be better because the governor can’t veto it, Eiland said.

“If the voters decide they want casino-style gambling, we can come back into session and pass the detailed enabling legislation,” he said.

But dodging the governor’s veto also would be a long shot because calling a constitutional amendment vote requires two-thirds of both the Senate and the House.

“That is a monumental task, especially with 101 Republicans out of 150 House members,” he said.

Eiland said he wouldn’t support a bill limiting gambling to horse and dog tracks.

“I will not support the issue if Galveston and other islands are left out of the mix,” he said. “I am not really concerned with what they decide to do on the mainland, but I want islands to have the option of full-blown casinos, not just slot machines.”

The Galveston Chamber of Commerce held a committee meeting about the bills Friday but decided not to take a position on Eiland’s bill or to oppose the others, Vic Pierson, chairman of the organization’s Governmental Affairs Committee, said.

Chamber leaders thought any bill would be at least 15 votes short of passing, he said.

Getting a bill through the legislature also was being hampered by divisions among supporters of casino gambling and those pushing for only video slots at race tracks, Pierson said.

“The cards are really stacked against it,” he said.

Eiland said he thought a gambling bill might get traction later in the session when lawmakers have to come to grips with a budget for the next two years.

The chamber has conducted a survey showing considerable support for casino gambling among its members but has not added gambling to its legislative agenda.