Meeting in Cheyenne on Tuesday, the legislative Management Council advanced five bills aimed at reining in slot-machine-like gaming in Wyoming.

If the current drafts become law in the legislative session that opens Feb. 9, the bills would provide prosecutors more power to charge gambling crimes and strengthen penalties against money laundering while also giving local governments more authority to oversee simulcasting and horse-racing terminals.

The prevailing sentiment from the Wyoming legislature’s administrative arm Tuesday was that slot-machine-like gaming in Wyoming has exploded , needs more regulation and threatens the quaint diversity of small towns.

The industry players, conversely, pointed to the jobs and revenues they generate, the live horse racing events that the HHR

See Full Page