Pull Tabs In Taverns

An Indiana Senate committee is expected to vote on legalizing pull tabs in taverns this week. The house already passed the legislation. We spoke with a tavern owner who says this small-stakes gambling is vital to his success, and to an opponent who is against any expansion of gambling in the state. Jim bounds owns the Mac-a-Doos and Out of Bounds Bar in Jasper. He sold illegal pull tabs in the days when police looked the other way. Now that theyre cracking down, hes had to stop. "when we took the punch boards out, Ive lost 25 percent of my business because people can still go to the clubs. The people will go to the club to play the punch board and not come in here." State law allows pull tabs in fraternal and veterans clubs. This legislation would level the playing field for taverns. Rev. Lorin Clemenz is the coordinator for the Indiana Coalition Against Legalized Gambling. "Our contention is that this is an expansion of gambling is going to take it much closer to peoples homes." Clemenz says Indiana just passed New Jersey among states generating the most revenue from gambling. Now only Nevada takes in more gambling money than Indiana. "One other thing Im concerned about is if it does pass and we get in trouble again financially, theyll come back and says its not an expansion of gambling. Why not let them have some slots in the taverns." Pull tabs are paper parimutuel games that look like lottery tickets. They sell for a dollar and prizes range from 1 to 599 dollars. "Its not an expansion of gambling because its already out there." Legislation would require each box of pull tabs to pay out at least 75 percent. And the bar owner would be charged 10 percent in excise tax on the wholesale price of the cards. Bounds and Clemenz agree on one thing. The bill will probably pass. House minority leader Brian Bosma of Indianapolis called legal gambling the crack cocaine of state public policy.