Calls for ‘middle ground’ on divisive Alabama casino bill

The House sponsor of an Alabama bill seeking casino and sports betting expansion believes the House of Representatives and the Senate must find suitable “middle ground” on the legislation after further disagreements on Thursday.

As reported by the Associated Press, the US state’s House of Representatives rejected Senate changes that scaled back the House’s initial plan for gaming expansion.

The House of Representatives had initially passed a bill allowing lottery, sports betting and up to 10 casinos with table games.

However, the Senate version, which has now faced rejection by the House, would remove sports betting and the establishment of casinos away from tribal lands.

Rep. Chris Blackshear, the bill’s House sponsor, told the Associated Press: “I think we’ve got to identify what that middle ground is first because it’s such a distance between the two. They’re not even close bookends.

“So we’ve got to first off establish what that middle ground looks like and then have those conversations.”