STFriday: small games of chance & Political Junkie Ken Rudin

What to look for on Smart Talk Friday:

The state Capitol is buzzing over legislation designed to expand small games of chance – pull-tabs, raffles and other games – into bars and taverns.

Currently only private clubs are allowed to offer this sort of small-time gambling. It’s been that way since the 1980s and they want to keep it that way.

But bar owners say the bill merely levels the playing field.

Legislation that passed the state Senate would funnel the games’ tax revenues into the Commonwealth’s General Fund. But Governor Corbett is joining Senate Democrats in support of language that would use the money to benefit the state’s senior citizens.

Smart Talk Friday will explore the plan, which could represent the largest expansion of gaming in the state since table games were authorized in 2010.

witf’s Capitol Bureau Chief Mary Wilson talks with Kit Watson, adjutant for the Pennsylvania American Legion. Joining us live on the show will be Amy Christie, director of the Pennsylvania Licensed Beverage Association, which represents bar and tavern owners.

Also, Smart Talk Friday welcomes back Political Junkie Ken Rudin. We’ll find out what races he’ll be watching across the country on Election Day, and what it could mean for the Pennsylvania’s 2014 election cycle.

Finally, Mary Wilson takes a look at board games through the eyes of Erik Arneson, a top legislative staffer, and Victor Schwartzmiller, the man behind an upcoming board game marathon to benefit the Children’s Miracle Network.

Listen to the program:

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