Ryan Skoczylas is Tomlinson’s chief of staff. Tomlinson plans to retire at the end of 2022. A funeral director, he has been criticized for supporting legislation that would benefit his industry. Robert “Tommy” Tomlinson has served in the state Senate since 1995 and played a pivotal role in ushering in Pennsylvania’s 2004 gambling law. Stewart did not respond to multiple requests for comment. Tomlinson … We are in his district and we know the gaming world as well as anybody.”

In a statement, Tomlinson said that consulting with outside experts is “an integral part of the legislative process,” and that his office spoke with multiple government agencies and industries impacted by unregulated skill games.Īs for his 2019 bill, he said, “Although we may have received insight on language, I had the final say on the legislation that was introduced.”Ī Parx spokesperson, Pete Shelly, echoed that sentiment, and added that as one of the largest employers in Tomlinson’s district, “we absolutely reached out to Sen. In Tomlinson’s case, Parx’s lobbyists also participated in strategic planning sessions with him, and drafted talking points and other key documents for his office, emails show. They also provide a behind-the-scenes look at the bare-knuckle fight over expanding gambling in Pennsylvania, which has pitted the state’s casinos, among others, against companies that produce skill games.Īt the center of it all: hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue and profit. The emails - exposed as part of an ongoing lawsuit - offer a rare glimpse of the reach that lobbyists enjoy in the state legislature and the close relationships that sometimes develop between lawmakers and special interests. “Attached is the proposed draft bill,” lawyer and lobbyist Mark Stewart replied within hours, adding that Parx executives were “still in the process of refining it and considering a couple additional concepts.” Where are we at with the draft language?”

Tommy would like to introduce this bill sometime next week. “Good Morning Gents,” Ryan Skoczylas, Tomlison’s chief of staff, wrote in an April email with the subject line “Language” to lobbyists for Parx Casino, which is located in Tomlinson’s district.“Hope everyone had a great Easter Weekend. At the senator’s request, lobbyists and lawyers for Pennsylvania’s top-earning casino had drafted the bill, and the final text matched that version almost word-for-word. What the public had no way of knowing is that the bill Tomlinson introduced that day was ghostwritten by the gaming industry. “These machines are essentially picking the pockets of our senior citizens,” Tomlinson said at the time, referencing lottery revenue that underwrites programs for older Pennsylvanians.

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