Democrats in Virginia Senate Subcommittee that oversees the Tysons Casino Bill has cleared its first hurdle

The Virginia Senate Gaming Subcommittee approved legislation that will pave the road for a new casino in Tysons.

Senate Bill 882, which would grant the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors power to place a casino referendum to a vote of residents for their decision, passed with a 5-2 voting. Sen. Adam P. Ebbin of Alexandria abstained. The bill will now be considered by the General Laws & Technology Committee at its next scheduled Wednesday meeting.

Senate Majority leader Scott Surovell, D-Mount Vernon, the principal patron of the legislation, told members of the subcommittee that Virginia needed a “crown jewel” like Maryland’s MGM National Harbor Hotel & Casino.

The Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce’s Julie Coons spoke out in support of the bill. She said that the creation of a mixed use, transit-oriented entertainment area, which would include a casino and a conference center and performing arts venue, is estimated to generate an additional $140,000,000 in revenue annually for the county. This will also result in millions of dollars in extra income for the Commonwealth. If approved by the Board of Supervisors a development of such a nature would diversify tax revenue in Fairfax County.

Surovell, when asked about the vocal opposition, dismissed the opponents in the Reston region, stating that they were miles away from where the project was to be built. Surovell acknowledged that Fairfax County Board of Supervisors did not request the authority to include a casino referendum on the ballot but had not taken a position about the proposed casino.

Comstock Holding Companies wished to build a Casino somewhere in Fairfax County along Metro’s Silver Line just outside of the Capital Beltway. Marsden narrowed the proposed location of the casino to Tysons during the 2024 session.

Surovell reports that only two supervisors, Walter Alcorn (D-Hunter Mill), and Jimmy Bierman, (D-Dranesville), have publicly spoken out against the casino. Dalia Palchik, the supervisor who represents the area of the proposed entertainment district (D-Providence), has not made an official statement.

Bierman represents McLean which is bordered by the Tysons District within the Capital Beltway. Alcorn’s eastern boundary ends at Route 7 which is directly across from the proposed gaming facility.

Claudia Arko is a lobbyist for the Board of Supervisors. She agreed that the board had not taken a formal position. However, Chairman Jeff McKay, (D), wrote a in January 2024 highlighting the county’s concern.

She said: “You’ll see that our concern over the revenue split is evident in the letter.” “I know that the revenue split is the same for other localities but when funding formulas for Fairfax County are created, we don’t always get the best deal.”

McKay wrote in his letter that “under the current law, the Commonwealth will receive more than 70 percent of gaming tax revenues generated by a Fairfax County Casino.” This is particularly relevant, given that the location described in the bill could generate significant local taxes without a casino.

Arko also responded to Surovell’s claims that the Tysons Casino project would alleviate the county budget shortfall by generating funding.

She said that “the real problem with our property tax, and why we have to raise it so much, is that the State doesn’t provide funding to schools in Fairfax to the extent that they should,” “For instance, if you give teachers a 3 percent pay raise, the state will cover about 20% of it. We pay around 80 percent. We pay 80 percent.

Virginia Diamond, President of the Northern Virginia Labor Federation AFL-CIO also spoke out in support of the bill. She said it would create 5,000 unionized jobs. A long line of union reps followed her, each stating that their respective chapter supported the project.

Connie Hartke, of the No Fairfax Casino Coalition, was the first in a long list of Fairfax County residents who spoke out against the legislation. She asked senators to hold off on passing SB982 till House Bill 248 has been passed. This bill would establish the Virginia Gaming Commission, which would oversee and regulate any legal gambling.

She said that any new gaming legislation, such as the creation of a casino at Tysons Corner, should be put on hold till this agency is fully functional. This will allow the agency to properly evaluate and oversee new projects in line with its mission. This bill was designed to benefit private interest, not the Fairfax County Community opposed to the bill.

It doesn’t seem the Democrat Senate will be listening to the outspoken citizens of Fairfax County.