As one of the leaders of the Asian American Business Owners Association (AABOA), I know firsthand how skill games have not only benefited Virginia small businesses but also helped them survive the onslaught of COVID, skyrocketing inflation, and higher-than-expected wages. AABOA represents more than 300 convenience stores, gas stations, and restaurants in Southwest Virginia. The survival of many of our locations depended on supplemental income from skill games before they were abruptly banned in October.
Our members are Asian Americans, including immigrants and first-generation Americans, all working to provide for their families and achieve the American Dream.
AABOA members were devastated by Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s amendments to Senate Bill 212. It was difficult, but we had no choice but to urge the legislature to vote the amendments down. There was just no path forward with the governor’s amended bill and thankfully the Senate rejected the amendments in a 34-6 vote.
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On a personal level, this entire process has been disappointing as a Republican. I have been a staunch Republican for a long time. I have put my faith, and my vote, behind Republican values and candidates. When I voted for Gov. Youngkin in 2021, I did so because I believed in his support for small businesses and Virginia’s economy.
However, navigating through the legislative process and fighting to pass legislation to properly regulate and tax skill games has been nothing short of a rollercoaster ride. The truth is it has disillusioned me, and so many other small business owners, in the political process and democracy as a whole. How can such a duly vetted general policy bill like SB 212, with bipartisan support, be derailed by one person and jeopardize thousands of people’s livelihoods? I didn’t realize this could happen in the U.S. as well. I know other small business owners feel the same way.
Additionally, this process has created incredible insecurity among small business owners all over the commonwealth as we await a reasonable solution. Many anxiously wait to see if they will be able to keep their businesses open or be forced to close while this political duel plays out.
Small business owners requested meetings with the governor’s office for weeks in the hopes that we could work together on a bill that would support small businesses while also addressing his concerns. Yet, we received no response.
So it should be no surprise that skill game locations were blindsided by the governor’s rewrite of Senate Bill 212.
Banning the games within a 35-mile radius of any casino, HHR facility, or racetrack, as well as 2,500 feet from any school, day care, or church would have banned skill games in virtually all of the commonwealth.
The governor’s proposed 45% tax rate would have crushed small businesses. That’s 20% higher than what was proposed in the original bill, which, at 25% would have already made skill games the highest taxed product in the commonwealth. Casinos pay an 18% tax.
Furthermore, the July 2025 start date, a full year after the July 2024 proposal in the original bill, would put thousands of small businesses in jeopardy of closing as many are already struggling day-to-day.
Those are just a few of the amendments, all of which would have made operating skill games in Virginia impossible. That is simply the truth and something we would have shared with the governor’s office if small business owners had been brought to the table.
Fortunately, legislators understood that there could be no path forward with this bill as amended and did the right thing by rejecting the amendments. Now, the original language of Senate Bill 212 goes back to the governor for consideration.
This bill is not a skill game industry bill. It’s a small business bill and one that has been thoroughly and stringently vetted by the legislature. The bill was a true bipartisan compromise — something that is rare these days.
Gov. Youngkin still has an opportunity to support Virginia small businesses by signing Senate Bill 212. AABOA, as well as the other organizations supporting skill games, would welcome a chance to meet with him and explain the merits of the original bill. Governor Youngkin recently stated that he desires to involve all stakeholders in the process. There is no larger stakeholder than small business owners.