West Virginia County Votes Authorize Racetrack Casinos

West Virginia does not let a city or county zone a casino into existence. Under the Racetrack Video Lottery Act, a pari-mutuel racetrack may add West Virginia Lottery video lottery games only after the county where it sits holds a local-option election naming that specific racetrack (W. Va. Code Section 29-22A-8(b)). " A majority "yes" sends certified results to the West Virginia Lottery Commission, which then issues the racetrack license if the applicant otherwise qualifies. A majority "no" bars another vote for two years (capped at 104 weeks between general elections); a "yes" locks the approval in for five years, after which a new vote requires a petition signed by registered voters equal to at least five percent of the county's turnout in the preceding general election.

The companion Racetrack Table Games Act, Section 29-22C, layers the identical county-vote mechanism on top before a licensed racetrack can add table games. The one statutory carve-out sits outside this county-vote system entirely: Article 25 authorizes a gaming facility at "no more than one well-established historic resort hotel" statewide -- The Greenbrier -- defined as a National Historic Landmark with at least 500 guest rooms and substantial recreational amenities. That facility needed no local election; the Legislature sited it directly by statute, while stating its intent was "to promote tourism and year-round employment," not "to promote gaming," and barring the gaming area from sitting at the hotel's main entrance.

A licensee that runs a video lottery game or terminal without commission authority, or after its license has expired and before renewal, commits a misdemeanor: up to one year in jail plus a fine up to $5,000 for an individual or $25,000 for a business entity (Section 29-22A-16). Failing other duties the article imposes draws a separate civil penalty the commission sets, capped at $10,000.