Illegal Video Slot Machines Could Cost Companies Their Liquor License Under New Legislation

Businesses that take a gamble on offering illegal video slot machines could lose their liquor licenses under legislation introduced in the Missouri House.

While the issue has been discussed for some time in Jeff City, and state regulators have staged some limited enforcement sweeps on occasion, a measure that’s been pre-filed for the upcoming legislative session would take that enforcement to a whole new level.

St. Louis Democrat Rasheen Aldridge said on Thursday that allowing the illegal machines is “inappropriate and disgusting.”

A story in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch notes that unlike Illinois and other states where video gambling is taxed and regulated by the government, Missouri has been unable to stop politically connected companies from turning gas stations and bars into unregulated gaming stops for customers.