Gambling expansion has been frozen in Florida

The new bill will lock Florida’s gambling footprint in place for 20 years and ice out any casino expansion — passed a key House committee along a party line vote Tuesday leaving the Legislature miles apart over how to resolve the lucrative gambling compact with the Seminole Tribe

The House bill, HB 7037, authorizes Gov. Rick Scott to renew the existing compact with the tribe, which runs two Hard Rock Casinos in Hollywood and Tampa and four other casinos in Florida. But instead of leaving the revenue sharing where it is, the House increases the minimum guarantee from about $250 million a year to at least $325 million in exchange for exclusive operation of blackjack in Miami-Dade and Broward counties and slot machines at its casinos outside of South Florida.