SB 1079’s $500 Flat Fee vs. Shapiro’s 52%: Pennsylvania’s Bipartisan Bills With 78 Days Left Before October 13

With 78 days left until the October 13 enforcement deadline, Pennsylvania’s legislature is on summer recess and two bipartisan bills sit in committee without a floor vote scheduled. Senate Bill 1079 and House Bill 2213 represent the industry’s best realistic path to survival — but the structure of each bill matters enormously for operators trying to plan their businesses. The central difference: SB 1079 proposes a flat $500 per month per terminal, not a percentage of revenue. For most PA skill game operators, that distinction is worth thousands of dollars per machine annually.

Here’s what the two bills actually say, how the math compares to Shapiro’s 52% gross terminal revenue (GTR) demand, and what operators should be doing right now while the legislature is out of session.

SB 1079: The Flat-Fee Senate Bill

Senate Bill 1079 was introduced by Republican Senator Gene Yaw of Bradford County and Democratic Senator Anthony H. Williams of Philadelphia — a genuinely bipartisan pairing that gives the bill credibility in both caucuses. The bill’s core structure:

• $500 monthly fee per skill game terminal, paid to the state
• 50,000 terminal cap statewide (roughly current market size, preserving the existing footprint)
• Projected annual state revenue of $300 million based on full terminal capacity
• A licensing framework establishing operator and location requirements

The flat-fee structure is a sharp departure from the percentage-of-revenue approach that Shapiro’s office and the casino lobby have pushed. Instead of taking a share of what each machine earns — which rises and falls with player activity — SB 1079 charges a fixed monthly amount regardless of revenue. This has significant practical implications that we’ll break down in the math section below.

The $300 million revenue estimate assumes close to maximum terminal deployment: 50,000 terminals × $500/month × 12 months = $300 million annually. Shapiro’s office has argued this falls short of what a GTR-based tax could generate, but that comparison assumes market survival under the higher rate — an assumption that’s far from certain.

HB 2213: The House Companion Bill

House Bill 2213 is the companion bill in the lower chamber, sponsored by Democratic Representative Danilo Burgos of Philadelphia and Republican Representative Jonathan Fritz of Wayne County — again, a cross-party pairing that matters for floor vote math. HB 2213 shares the general regulatory framework of SB 1079 but introduces a specific formula for how state revenue gets distributed:

• 40% of proceeds directed to transportation infrastructure funding
• Remaining 60% split across county and municipal government, Clean Streams environmental fund, Pennsylvania State Police enforcement costs, and the Pennsylvania Lottery

The transportation allocation is a deliberate political move. Pennsylvania has a chronic transportation funding gap, and routing 40% of new skill games revenue toward roads and bridges builds a coalition of support beyond the gaming industry. Legislators from suburban and rural districts with transportation needs have reason to vote yes even if they have no particular interest in skill games themselves.

The Pennsylvania Senate majority — Republican leadership — has signaled support for the HB 2213 framework, which is significant: Senate majority backing dramatically improves a bill’s odds of clearing a floor vote when the legislature returns.

The Math That Matters: $500 Flat vs. 52% GTR

The difference between a flat monthly fee and a percentage-of-revenue tax is not merely structural — it is the difference between an industry that survives and one that doesn’t for many small operators. Let’s run the comparison on realistic monthly revenue scenarios:

At $1,500/month GTR per terminal (a lower-traffic location):

• SB 1079 flat fee: $500
• 52% GTR: $780
• Flat fee savings: $280/month, $3,360/year per terminal

At $3,000/month GTR per terminal (mid-range location):

• SB 1079 flat fee: $500
• 52% GTR: $1,560
• Flat fee savings: $1,060/month, $12,720/year per terminal

At $5,000/month GTR per terminal (high-traffic location):

• SB 1079 flat fee: $500
• 52% GTR: $2,600
• Flat fee savings: $2,100/month, $25,200/year per terminal

The crossover point — where $500/month flat equals a 52% GTR tax — is a terminal earning just $961/month in gross revenue. Any terminal earning more than that pays less under SB 1079 than under Shapiro’s proposal. The overwhelming majority of operating PA skill game terminals exceed that threshold.

For an operator running five mid-range terminals, the difference between SB 1079 and a 52% GTR tax is approximately $63,600 per year in tax liability. That is the margin that keeps the business viable or doesn’t.

One nuance: the flat fee also means a slow month and a strong month cost the operator the same amount. Under a percentage-based tax, a poor month reduces your tax burden; under the flat fee, you pay $500 regardless. For operators in seasonal locations or areas with variable traffic, this is worth modeling carefully.

Why Bipartisan Co-Sponsorship Actually Matters Here

Pennsylvania’s General Assembly is closely divided. The Senate has a Republican majority, while the House majority shifts depending on the issue. Skill games legislation has historically failed not because one party opposed it, but because neither party could deliver enough of its own members to push it across the finish line without some votes from the other side.

The cross-party co-sponsorship structure of SB 1079 (Yaw + Williams) and HB 2213 (Burgos + Fritz) changes the political geometry. A Republican-primary co-sponsor in the Senate reassures the GOP caucus that supporting the bill doesn’t mean giving Democrats a unilateral win. A Democratic primary co-sponsor in the House gives urban legislators permission to support a bill that benefits small businesses in their districts. This coalition-building is not cosmetic; it is the specific mechanism by which controversial legislation moves in Harrisburg.

Senate majority Republican leaders have already signaled alignment with the HB 2213 framework. If House Democratic leadership can similarly deliver their caucus — a plausible outcome given the small-business and transportation revenue angles — the votes may already exist. The question is whether leadership will schedule them before October 13.

What “In Committee” Means and How Fast Bills Can Move

As of late July, neither SB 1079 nor HB 2213 has cleared a committee assignment, which means neither has had a committee vote and neither is scheduled for a floor vote. In ordinary legislative circumstances, this would be concerning for a bill with a hard deadline 78 days away.

But Pennsylvania’s legislature can move fast when leadership wants it to. Committees can be convened on short notice, bills can be expedited to the floor, and companion bills in both chambers can be run simultaneously to compress the timeline. The PA Gaming Act itself passed in 2004 on a compressed schedule under significant political pressure. The 2006 legislative pay raise passed and was repealed in the same year. Pennsylvania has the institutional capacity to move major legislation quickly when the will is there.

The realistic timeline, if leadership commits to action:

• September 9: First House floor session of fall return
• September 9–12: Committee votes possible in both chambers if pre-negotiated
• September 15–22: Floor votes in one chamber
• September 22–30: Floor votes in second chamber
• By October 1: Bill on Shapiro’s desk with 12 days to spare

That schedule is tight but executable. It requires pre-negotiated language — which means the tax rate compromise between Shapiro’s 52% demand and the SB 1079 flat-fee framework needs to be worked out during August recess, not after September 9.

The Shapiro Variable: Will He Sign a Flat-Fee Bill?

Governor Shapiro has been consistent that skill games should be regulated and taxed, but he has not publicly embraced the flat-fee model. His administration’s public position remains anchored to a GTR percentage that generates more revenue than $300 million annually. The Governor’s own budget had projected over $500 million in skill games revenue in year one under a 52% rate, though that projection assumed market volumes that most industry analysts consider optimistic at the 52% rate.

What could move Shapiro toward the flat-fee structure:

• A machine cap lower than 50,000 that implicitly limits downside revenue risk
• Consumer protection provisions such as age verification standards or daily loss limits that address his stated regulatory concerns
• A commitment that the flat fee escalates over time (e.g., $500 in year one, $600 in year three) to grow state revenue as the market matures
• An enforcement mechanism that addresses the black-market machine problem his office has highlighted

Shapiro has significant leverage: he can veto any bill that lands on his desk. But he also has political incentive to sign something. A failed October 13 deadline — followed by a chaotic enforcement scenario across 70,000 machines in small businesses statewide — is not a political outcome anyone in Harrisburg wants to own heading into the 2027 election cycle. That shared incentive is what creates the conditions for a compromise.

Nonprofits and Veterans’ Organizations Are Pushing Hard

One dimension of the SB 1079 coalition that deserves attention: nonprofits and veterans’ organizations have become increasingly vocal advocates for the flat-fee framework. Veteran halls, American Legion posts, and charitable organizations across Pennsylvania use skill game revenue to fund operations and community programs. Their constituents are not casino operators or large route companies — they are community institutions with zero political enemies.

These groups have been meeting directly with lawmakers during recess, making the case that SB 1079’s flat-fee structure is the only framework that keeps their operations viable. The political optics of shutting down skill games that fund veterans’ halls and charitable programs are significantly worse than the optics of reaching a deal at a lower tax rate than Shapiro initially demanded. This constituency is arguably the most effective lobbying force in the current skill games fight precisely because it is not a traditional gaming industry lobby.

What PA Skill Game Operators Should Do Before September 9

The next six weeks are the most consequential in the history of Pennsylvania skill games regulation. Here is the concrete action plan:

1. Call your state senator and representative this week. The legislature is on recess, which means lawmakers are home in their districts holding constituent hours and office appointments. This is the highest-leverage moment for constituent contact. Call the district office, not Harrisburg. Ask specifically about SB 1079 and HB 2213 and whether your legislator supports bringing them to a floor vote before October 13. A call from a constituent operating a small business with skill games is worth far more than a call from an industry lobbyist.
2. Run the SB 1079 flat-fee math on your specific locations. For each terminal you operate, calculate what $500/month means versus 52% GTR versus a hypothetical 35% GTR. Know exactly which locations remain viable under each scenario. This analysis is not theoretical — it is the basis for every business decision you make in the next 78 days.
3. Reach out to the Pennsylvania Skill Games Association. The industry association is coordinating the organized push on Harrisburg during recess. Individual operators joining that effort multiply its impact. If you aren’t already in contact with the industry group, make that connection now.
4. Review your revenue-share contracts for tax-rate adjustment language. If SB 1079 passes at $500/month flat, the tax cost shifts relative to any current agreement that assumed no state tax. If Shapiro negotiates a higher rate, location owners may need to absorb part of the cost. Understand what your current contracts say about regulatory changes before you need to renegotiate.
5. Begin assembling licensing documentation now. Whatever bill passes will require a licensing application. Common requirements across all frameworks include: business entity documentation, proof of location agreements, machine serial numbers and manufacturer certifications, and clean compliance record with local permits. Getting this package assembled in August means you can file quickly when a framework passes — and early filers typically have fewer complications than operators who scramble.
6. Maintain a contingency plan for October 14. No operator wants to plan for shutdown. But every operator should know exactly which machines are in which locations and have a protocol for orderly removal if the legislature misses the deadline. Having that plan ready does not make the outcome more likely; it makes you less exposed if it happens.

The Bottom Line

SB 1079 and HB 2213 are the most operator-friendly bills with bipartisan backing that Pennsylvania skill games have seen. The flat-fee structure of SB 1079 in particular represents a fundamental departure from the GTR-percentage model the casino lobby and Shapiro administration have advocated — and the math difference for operating businesses is enormous.

The challenge is not the bill’s merits. The challenge is calendar. With 78 days until October 13 and the legislature out of session until September 9, there are realistically five to seven weeks of legislative action time before the enforcement clock runs out. That window is tight enough that nothing can be taken for granted — and loose enough that a negotiated deal is entirely achievable if both chambers and the governor find the political will to close the gap.

What happens during this August recess — in district offices, in constituent meetings, in back-channel negotiations between party leadership — will determine whether there is a deal ready to move the moment legislators return to Harrisburg. Operators who engage now are contributing to that outcome. Operators who wait are not.

We’ll update this page as legislative developments emerge. For questions about what a specific regulatory outcome means for your operation, contact us directly.