One Las Vegas Group is Making A Big Push to Bring Gambling to Texas

How cool would it be not to have to drive outside of Texas to be able to play blackjack or test our luck at a slot machine? The talk has been there for years about legalizing casino gambling in Texas, with a '23 proposal failing in Austin.

But that hasn't stopped the Las Vegas Sands from continuing to make a push to legalize gambling in the Lone Star State.

The Good and Bad of Gambling

It was a big deal in Texas in the early to mid-90s when the state legalized lottery games. It became fun for residents to head into a convenience store and purchase a scratch-off ticket or select their numbers in the various nightly lottery drawings.

Of course, the downside to this fun is those who become addicted to the medium and will forgo necessities in hopes of hitting it big.

As more and more states begin legalizing gambling of some sort, the stigma of being home to a casino is going away. For many East Texans, it's common to head to Shreveport, Oklahoma, or Livingston, Texas for an evening of sitting in front of a slot machine... or at the blackjack table to win or blow some disposable income.

Texas House Failed Vote

In '23, the Texas House of Representatives Speaker proposed a bill that would legalize gambling, and sports betting and create a Texas Gaming Commission (KHOU) in Texas. It ultimately failed. The proposal would also allow for four resort casinos in cities like Dallas, Austin, Houston, and other larger Texas cities.

Even with that failed vote, a group backed by the casino company Las Vegas Sands continues its push to legalize gambling in Texas. They currently operate casino resorts in Macao and Singapore and used to operate The Venetian, The Palazzo, and the Sands Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas (mysanantonio.com). They are also the same company that bought a controlling interest in the Dallas Mavericks from Mark Cuban.

Latest Push in North Texas

Elected officials from Irving, Arlington, and Dallas met with the Las Vegas Sands group. The hope is to make their case during the 2025 Texas legislative session. But this would mean that a change to the Texas constitution would need to be made.

That's going to be difficult to do. Another part of this discussion is to put together a committee to study the various impacts gambling could have in the region (nbcdfw.com). This process could take 12 to 18 months.

The push to legalize gambling in Texas isn't going to be easy nor will it be a quick process. Even if it fails in 2025, committees like this can gather even more information to better prepare themselves for the next presentation.

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