ST. PAUL – State Rep. Shane Mekeland, R-Clear Lake, said House Democrat legislation would effectively end electronic pull tabs as we know them, dramatically reducing revenue generated for local charities and other organizations.
Language in the majority’s omnibus tax bill (H.F. 1938) eliminates the “open all” feature that has been in use in electronic pull-tab games for years. This move, Mekeland said, would diminish charitable gaming funds these popular games produce, compromising a critical revenue source for local charities ranging from veteran organizations to youth sports teams, Main Street business partners and beyond.
“The majority is partnering with their special-interest friends to destroy our communities’ charitable funding,” Mekeland said. “These groups are essential to our local communities and are great assets to us in Greater Minnesota. It would be a disgrace for House Democrats to do them so wrong by shutting down a main source of their revenue.”
Mekeland said, in 2022 alone, electronic pull tabs generated almost $2 billion in revenue that was then invested into communities. Without this critical revenue stream, Mekeland said much of the charitable efforts Minnesotans currently benefit from would not be possible.
“Not only that, but this would have large consequences for our local bars and restaurants that already are trying to recover from revenue lost from forced shutdowns at a time price increases, supply issues and a workforce shortage already are stacked against them,” Mekeland said. “Choking out electronic pull tabs would cause even more significant negative impacts.
“All of this financial hardship is threatening outstate small businesses and charities, while the Democrats just authorized $17,000 per month in rent for the governor's temporary residence the next 18 months.”
Mekeland said he continues working with House Democrats to remove this provision from the tax bill, but it's critical that legislators hear directly from charities, bars, restaurants, VFWs, and other community organizations so they understand just how serious the consequences would be if this provision is passed.
More information regarding this bill and contact information for legislators can be found at www.house.mn.gov.
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