New Jersey officials and residents continue to be debating whether the state should approve casinos that are new North or Central Jersey, the first that will exist in the state outside of Atlantic City.

But while the prospect of creating venues that are new contend with local competition from Pennsylvania and New York is intriguing, voters probably won’t get to weigh in on the issue this season.

So that you can get a question on a statewide ballot that would ask voters to amend their state’s constitution to enable for new casinos outside of Atlantic City, state legislators would need to accept a bill by August 3rd.

While the New Jersey Senate is scheduled to generally meet on July 23, it’s unclear if the proposal would also be on the agenda, and the state Assembly doesn’t have a conference scheduled with this summer.

2016 Vote More Realistic

‘Maybe within the next few days the stars could align so we could see something happen, but right now I wouldn’t normally bet the home,’ stated Assemblyman Scott Rumama (R-Wayne). ‘There’s still talk of trying to place it regarding the ballot in 2016.’

But most lawmakers, including people who have strongly supported building one or more brand new casinos in their state, have admitted that the vote probably will not be coming this year.

‘we think there had been a strategy we’re able to have adopted to get this accomplished,’ said Assemblyman Ralph Caputo (D-Essex), certainly one of the chief advocates for gambling expansion into the state. ‘But there are a lot of…influences that are pushing it in an alternate way.’

The proposal is a controversial one amongst both lawmakers and nj-new Jersey residents.

Poll Shows Tepid Support for New Casino

It’s hardly surprising that representatives of Atlantic City are contrary to the idea.

They argue that a casino that is new in brand New Jersey would mostly serve to cannibalize revenues that are currently enjoyed by the eight resorts within the city, and prospects of revenue sharing from North Jersey casinos hasn’t been sufficient to get them on board.

However, there is certainly also widespread skepticism among New Jersey residents, even outside the Atlantic City area.

Based on a poll conducted month that is last Fairleigh Dickinson University, only 37 percent of New Jersey residents were in support of allowing casinos outside of Atlantic City, while 56 percent opposed the plan.

‘The public is questioning the logic behind permitting the spread of casino gambling,’ said science that is political Krista Jenkins. ‘ They don’t seem to be sold in the idea of saving the gaming industry in the state by allowing it to spread.’

The poll also found that fears of cannibalization may have some truth in their mind. If new casinos were built, 34 percent of New Jersey residents said they would be more likely to visit them, while only 31 percent said they would most likely still visit Atlantic City venues.

In order to have the question on the ballot, the proposed amendment would have to be publically available for at minimum 20 days, after which it a public hearing would need to be held in the issue.

New Jersey legislators in both houses would then need to pass the constitutional amendment with a majority that is three-fifths.

Provided that the vote will have to occur by August 3, this means that the proposed amendment would have to be introduced in the next days that are few something that seems very unlikely to take place.