The Kentucky Lottery tracks those in businesses where it also operates and has found at least 1,504 in 72 counties.
It’s not clear how many of the machines, which are also referred to as “gray games” because they operate in a legal gray area, are operating in Kentucky. Killian Timoney, R-Lexington, said on the House floor last week. “I think we need to move swiftly and, I think, we need to ban these machines as quickly as we possibly can,” bill sponsor Rep. They said the companies responsible for placing them around the state did not follow proper procedures to do so. Supporters of the legislation said the unregulated games are siphoning money away from the Kentucky Lottery and other legal forms of gambling. House Bill 608, which passed the House last week and cleared a Senate committee Tuesday, would ban the increasingly popular games that have spread to hundreds, maybe thousands, of gas stations, convenience stores and bars across the commonwealth. They are what’s known as skill games and they’re cropping up all over Kentucky. The machines have exploded in popularity in the last yearĭespite their appearance, though, these aren’t slot machines.Supporters say they're a lifeline to small businesses.Opponents say they hurt the Kentucky Lottery and are not legal.'Gray games' or skill games are similar to slot machines.
