At present, we think the odds are pretty low. There haven’t been too many pro-casino rumblings coming out of Austin lately, especially compared to states like Kentucky, Delaware, Iowa and Illinois, where serious pressure has been applied to expand the forms of gambling that are currently on offer.
The likeliest scenario sees the Texas Legislature approving slot machines at the Lone Star State’s parimutuel facilities, i.e., horse tracks. However, should Gov. Rick Perry – an anti-gambling zealot in the mold of his predecessor, George W. Bush – be re-elected, a veto is all but guaranteed.
Also, any form of gambling permitted to the private sector in Texas would, under federal law, have to be made available to the state’s Native American tribes. Under Perry, the state has gone to great lengths, spending countless dollars and man hours to quash the casinos operated by the Kickapoo, Tigua and Alabama-Coushatta tribes. To have to give them Vegas-style slots or even Class II electronic-bingo machines would be an extremely bitter pill for the Republican establishment to swallow.
