Former Pro Bowl Linebacker and College Football Hall of Fame Class of 2022 inductee LaVar Arrington today drew attention to the positive economic impact of skill gaming in Virginia. Arrington made his comments following the on-site broadcast of his national Up On Gameshow and podcast at the Buffalo Wild Wings location in Richmond. He co-hosts the program with former NFL stars TJ Houshmandzadeh and Plaxico Burress.
“Small businesses are engrained into the fabric of our communities and many are struggling due to hardships resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Arrington. “From supply chain problems, higher prices and struggles finding employees, running a small business is harder today than ever. Fortunately, Pace-O-Matic’s skill games have provided a much-needed revenue source and lifeline to these businesses. I am proud to be working with a company that not only supports small businesses, but also is advocating strongly for increased taxes and regulation. They conduct business the right way and are committed to having a longstanding relationship with their small business partners and the Commonwealth of Virginia.”
Following the broadcast, Arrington held an additional podcast, Up On Game Presents: Keeping Pace With Skill Powered by Pace-O-Matic. Arrington interviewed Nate Thompson of East Side Amusements of Courtland, Virginia, where they discussed how skill games impact his business and other small businesses in Virginia.
“I'm a family-owned business,” said Thompson. “We have about 20 employees. We depend on skill games. So do my customers, Buffalo Wild Wings and the other 500 locations that we operate in. They all have employees, they all have families. Higher wages for their employees, renovations in their stores. And guess what? They all live local, the money stays local. I mean, it's very important to do that.”
Arrington will conduct further stops in Virginia Beach, Emporia and Northern Virginia in the weeks ahead to draw attention to the legal skill game issue.
The revenue from skill games has been critical to small businesses, including bars, restaurants, truck stops and convenience stores. This revenue means businesses can hire more employees, increase wages, offer health benefits, make critical improvements to their locations and support charitable organizations in their communities.
While we recognize there is litigation regarding legislation related to skill games, Pace-O-Matic, which powers legal skill games, openly supports the regulation and taxation of the skill game industry and encourages legislation that implements strong enforcement of the industry.
Currently, thousands of illegal VGTs are in the market masquerading as skill games. When skill games were regulated by the Virginia ABC and additional taxes were applied, the industry delivered nearly $140 million in annual tax revenue to the Commonwealth in FY 2020-21.
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