DECATUR, Ill. (WAND) — If Illinois is going to bet on betting, some are concerned the state could feed gambling addictions.
"It is going to give people another outlet or another opportunity to get that fix," said Diane Pleasant, a counselor in Decatur.
Pleasant has worked in central Illinois for more than 20 years. In that time, she's helped hundreds of people overcome gambling addictions and more.
"Sometimes its a little more difficult to assess the severity of their problem because individuals are not very transparent," she said.
But the state is seemingly all in. Governor JB Pritzker's budget is banking on $200 million in licensing fees this next fiscal year.
And casinos and racetracks are also seeing green.
"It makes the most sense to allow current brick and mortar venues to offer sports betting," said Tom Swoik, executive director of the Illinois Casino Gaming Association. "Facilities already exist. Regulatory infrastructure is in place."
But what about small business owners already in the gambling industry with video gaming terminals? The licensing fees will probably exclude them from rolling the dice with the latest wagers.
"It will affect a little bit because [customers] will have one more option to gamble on," said Karan Kang, a gas station owner with video gaming in his store. "I will lose a little bit but we'll see what we can do."
A complicated issue — that neither Kang nor Pleasant are adamantly for or against.
As of Thursday, the bill remains in a House committee awaiting a vote. If it passes committee, it will then head to the full Illinois House for another vote before getting cleared to go to the Senate.
