A bill aimed at attracting a Dave & Buster's restaurant and gaming arcade zipped through the Arkansas Senate on Monday.
In a 33-0 vote, the Senate sent Senate Bill 745 by Sen. Jeremy Hutchinson, R-Little Rock, to the House.
"It essentially allows a facility to come into my own district -- actually [Democratic Sen. Joyce Elliott of Little Rock]'s district right on the border," Hutchinson told senators.
"There are no objections to it," he said.
Hutchinson told a Senate committee last week that a proposed Dave & Buster's would employ about 140 people and amount to a $6 million construction project. He has said the company wants to locate near the Bass Pro Shop.
The bill changes state law covering amusement device operators.
Currently, prizes in arcades can't be worth more than $12.50.
SB745 would raise that limit to $500.
The higher limit would only be permitted at a facility that has more than 25,000 square feet, offers a full-service restaurant menu during all hours of operation, has at least 100 amusement devices and is located in a county that has a population exceeding 350,000 and is traversed by a navigable river. Only Pulaski County qualifies under that definition.
The bill states that it doesn't authorize draw games, slot machines, roulette wheels, craps, video poker and "casino-gambling style games of any other type in which the outcome is determined substantially by chance."
The $500 prize limit would be for iPads, according to Hutchinson.
The bill would have no effect on state tax revenues, according to the state Finance and Administration Department.
Dave & Buster's had origins in Little Rock and has locations across the nation, but it no longer operates in the Natural State.
Metro on 03/24/2015