The House Ways and Means voted to ask voters next year to decide whether to permit slots at five locations, but in a surprise move abandoned efforts to pass a detailed bill on how they would operate and where the money would go.
The committee also reversed action taken just last night by a subcommittee to add new locations to the constitutional amendment that voters would be asked to approve in November 2008. It took Harford and Frederick counties out of the bill, and restored a site near Ocean City.
The full House will begin debate on the slots referendum this afternoon.
“You have to have the votes to get your product out,” said subcommittee chair Frank Turner, D-Howard, and there were not the votes to pass it.
“This is how politics works,” said Del. Craig Rice, D-Montgomery. “It became obvious that the slots bill as amended wasn?t going to get through the House.”
