Pennsylvania Skill-Game Deadline Approaches

Pennsylvania businesses that still have skill-game machines on their premises have until October 13 to deal with them before the state’s enforcement pause expires.

The Pennsylvania State Police issued another reminder on September 17 following the state Supreme Court’s June ruling that the devices qualify as slot machines under Pennsylvania law.

From October 14, businesses that continue possessing, operating or maintaining affected machines outside properly licensed locations can face seizures and possible criminal charges.

The court gave businesses 120 days

Skill games have spread through bars, convenience stores, social clubs and other Pennsylvania businesses over the past decade.

Their legal position had been disputed for years. Operators argued that the games differed from conventional slots because players could use an element of skill to influence the outcome, and earlier court decisions had given that argument some legal backing.

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court rejected that distinction on June 15.

Its ruling found that the devices meet the legal definition of slot machines and fall under Pennsylvania’s Gaming Act and criminal gambling laws.

The justices delayed enforcement for 120 days because businesses and operators had been relying on the previous court decisions. That period ends October 13.

Licensed casino gaming remains unaffected

The ruling deals with machines operating outside Pennsylvania’s established licensing system.

Retail casinos already operate under Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board oversight, as does the state’s digital casino market. Licensed PA online casinos therefore sit on a very different legal footing from skill-game terminals placed in ordinary businesses.

The State Police says that, once the court-ordered pause ends, slot machines can legally be operated only in properly licensed locations, including casinos and qualifying licensed truck stops.

For a bar or convenience store currently hosting skill games, keeping the machines switched off won’t be enough.

Pennsylvania already regulates legal slot gaming

The state’s casino industry has been working through formal licensing for years.

When Pennsylvania prepared to launch regulated online gambling, suppliers also had to receive approval before offering games in the state. We covered one example in 2018, when NetEnt applied for a Pennsylvania gaming license.

Skill games expanded outside that system while their legal status worked its way through the courts.

The June decision removes much of that uncertainty. Unless lawmakers create a separate framework before the deadline, the machines will be treated under the laws already covering slots.

Tens of thousands of machines are involved

This isn’t a small corner of Pennsylvania’s gambling market.

The report on the Supreme Court decision put the number of skill-game machines operating across the state at roughly 70,000.

Many are installed in businesses that wouldn’t otherwise be considered gambling venues.

That has made the debate difficult in Harrisburg. Small-business owners and social clubs say income from the machines can be valuable, while lawmakers have spent years disagreeing over whether the games should be legalized, taxed and licensed under a separate system.

The Supreme Court ruling didn’t create a new licensing system for skill games. It applied existing Pennsylvania gambling law to the machines.

What businesses have been told to do

The September State Police notice gives establishments several practical points to work from:

• Machines covered by the ruling must be removed from unlicensed locations before enforcement begins.
• Simply switching a machine off or unplugging it doesn’t satisfy the guidance.
• Businesses have been advised to contact the vendor or distributor that owns the equipment and arrange removal.
• From October 14, police can seize machines and associated money or equipment, with criminal charges possible where authorities consider them appropriate.

Businesses whose vendors refuse to collect the machines have been advised to contact State Police for assistance.

Lawmakers can still change the outcome

The General Assembly still has time to pass legislation before the safe-harbor period expires.

Several proposals have been discussed since the June ruling, with lawmakers differing over taxation, licensing and where skill games should be allowed to operate.

Until one of those proposals becomes law, the court ruling remains the position businesses have to prepare for.

October 13 is therefore the date machine operators and the businesses hosting them need to work from. If Harrisburg doesn’t act first, enforcement can begin the following day.