'Gray machines' will shut down across Kentucky at the end of the month

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- If you've been to a gas station, restaurant, or bar in Kentucky, you've probably seen skill games that look like slot machines.

Games such as Burning Barrel, manufactured by Pace-O-Matic, were the subject of a pricy lobbying battle during the last legislative session.

Ultimately, House Bill 594 was passed by the GOP-controlled state legislature and signed by Gov. Andy Beshear back in March.

That law bans what proponents call "skill games" and critics call "gray games." The machines with names like Burning Barrel and Wildcat have become popular and can generate thousands of dollars in income per month for the establishments.

"They're entirely unregulated. I don't believe that they were legal. Yet they came into Kentucky and just set up. ... with zero regulation, zero taxation, zero system to help those who might have any issues," Beshear said in March.

That means many places are starting to shut down and unplug the machines because there's a statewide ban going into effect on June 29.

Business owners, like Cres Bride from Joe's Older Than Dirt and Rebecca Henry from Bud's Tavern, said these machines were lifelines during the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

"From Hazard to Owensboro, to northern Kentucky, small businessmen reap a huge reward to keep their businesses afloat," Bride said.

Henry said her restaurant generated an extra $5,000 in revenue a month off of the games.

"We're able to keep our lights on. We can have extra events around here. You know, I can bring in extra bands on extra days, you know," Henry said.

A group funded by the horse racing industry, Kentuckians Against Illegal Gambling, led the push to ban the gray machines, criticizing them as unregulated and untaxed.

The slots-like historical horse racing games remain legal, and the CEO for Churchill Downs has previously told investors he was happy to see the gray games get the boot.

"It has me upset because of the gross hypocrisy involved in this," Bride said.

Despite their disappointment, Bride and Henry will follow the law.

"The games will be unplugged, the motherboards will be taken out," Bride said.

A combination of skill games manufacturers has filed a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the skill game ban.

That case is pending, so in the meantime, the machines will still be turned off by June 29. However, there is an agreement allowing the inoperable machines to remain in place until the case is resolved.

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