The Alabama Senate dealt the state’s House of Representatives a different hand when it passed a gambling package without a Mobile County casino or sports betting Thursday night, causing some lawmakers to worry if the bills will survive a conference committee.
Rep. Sam Jones, D-Mobile, who helped reps. Chris Blackshear, R-Phenix City, and Andy Whitt, R-Harvest, draft the original plan over the course of many months, said the Senate-approved package is “substantially different” from what the House passed in February.
The bills will head back to the House after next week, where members could either accept the Senate’s plan with a concurring vote, or convene a conference committee with members of the Senate to discuss a way forward.
