DES MOINES, Iowa — In a rare move, the Iowa House and Senate have called for the removal of 6,000 slot machine-like lottery devices installed at more than 2,800 retail locations. The state’s governor, Tom Vilsack, signed the bill into law March 20.
The Iowa Lottery’s TouchPlay machines, which are common at grocery stores, taverns, convenience stores, truck stops and bowling alleys throughout the state, have generated $212 million in sales since July, according to the Des Moines Register.
Legislators argued that gambling had spread beyond what they had intended when the go-ahead was given for the lottery expansion in 2001 and that lottery officials had misled them regarding what the machines would look like. Observers said the machines had become more attractive to children than anticipated, drawing their attention with buttons and flashing lights. Their easy accessibility made them more tempting than other forms of gambling, especially for problem gamblers.
Responding to a surge of public opinion against the machines, the Senate voted 40–10 on March 13 to give businesses 45 days from the ban’s enactment to remove them, and the House voted 80–18 the next day on a similar measure. “We deserve to stand up and say we made a mistake. We have an obligation to fix that mistake,” Sen. Mary Lundby, a Republican, said.
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