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For those following the video poker issue here's where things stand as of Tuesday evening:

It has passed the House Judiciary I Committee on a unanimous vote. House leaders have decided it must go through the Finance Committee. My guess is they are thinking the bill is going to be a bit controversial and want to make sure it has a fiscal note. (Bills that spend or potentially spend money need to have cost estimates attached to them, or certain members of the House and Senate can kill them by fiat by pointing out that said cost estimate has not been done. Running a bill through Finance can sometimes assuage the worries of money-minded folks and seems to get a fiscal note done as a byproduct.)

I have heard from members that there is more than one lobbyist looking at this bill and I'm told by Rep. Hugh Holliman that some with an interest in the video slot devices complained they didn't have a chance to get heard on the bill. Apparently these folks will get a chance in Finance.

I don't know when that Finance hearing will be. From what I can gather, this isn't in the top tier of bills that the House Democrats will push to get done, but it's considered fairly important and they'll make a go at getting it over the Senate before the end of the legislative session.

A couple folks have called frustrated they can't find the video slot language online. That's because the House gutted a senate bill and substituted what was there. Take a look at the latest edition of S 180 now and you should be able to see what we're talking about.

The bill creates two new offenses: one for possessing video slot machines and another for promoting and selling the service. (Basically, it's aimed at getting you whether you're in retail or wholesale.) It does not criminalize the act of playing one of these machines. And it goes into effect on Dec. 1, so presumably people would have time to cash out and get rid of them.

From what I've been able to discern, House leaders aren't interested in having anything that resembles video poker hanging about the state. Part of this, I'm sure, has to do with hangover from the Jim Black era, when video poker was involved in one of many scandals culminated in the former House Speaker go to jail.

Some quotes from today's Judiciary I hearing:

"I would characterize this as whack-a-mole," said Rep. Ray Rapp, a Madison County Democrat. "Just when we think we've gotten it taken care of in terms of video poker and gaming, it pops up again."

.....

"When I met them a couple months ago, I'll be honest with you, I first thought these people are video poker reincarnated. And they're not, they just got unlucky," said Theresa Kostrzewa, a lobbyist for Hest Technology, who asked the committee to delay making a decision on the bill. Video poker was part of a string of scandals that plagued former House Speaker Jim Black, who was later convicted on corruption charges.

"I told them, you're going to be guilty by association, but I know you're no breaking the video poker law," Kostrzewa said. "They're playing a legal sweepstakes game."