Opponents say the tickets amount to a lottery and would violate the state Constitution.
By Associated Press
Published March 5, 2004
TALLAHASSEE - Charities that sponsor bingo games could sell instant pull-tab bingo tickets under a bill the House passed Thursday over objections that it is unconstitutional.
The bill (HB 187) allows charities or veterans' organizations to sell pull-tab or scratch-off instant bingo tickets if they already offer regular bingo. The player would remove a cover from a ticket or scratch off a coating to reveal if a prize is underneath.
It passed the House 103-11. A similar measure is pending in the Senate.
Opponents of the scratch-off bingo sales say the measure expands gambling, something Republicans who control the House - including Speaker Johnnie Byrd - say they oppose.
But the bill passed with overwhelming Republican support, including Byrd's vote.
Byrd said later he didn't consider it an expansion of gambling.
"It's ... just a modification of an existing gaming thing," Byrd said. "We already have bingo."
Opponents say the bill may be a violation of the state Constitution, which says only that the state may operate a lottery.
"You can call it bingo if you like to, but it clearly is a lottery," said Rep. Bruce Kyle, R-Fort Myers, who voted against it. He said it was a lottery because the winning tickets are predetermined.
The bill's sponsor, Rep. Charlie Dean, R-Inverness, said Florida Lottery officials told him the measure wouldn't affect their sales, an important part of the state's education funding.
Even if the bill passes the Senate, it would still have to be signed by Gov. Jeb Bush, who has opposed new forms of gambling in the past, including a bill similar to this one last year.
"If it's the same thing I vetoed before, my guess is I haven't changed my position," Bush said Thursday.
