Sample electronic pull-tab device
The Associated Press
ST. PAUL, Minn. - Regulators overseeing a significant gambling expansion to pay for a new Minnesota Vikings stadium are on the verge of adopting requirements for the new handheld devices coming soon to bars and restaurants across the state.
Among them: They can't resemble video slot machines. They must allow for independent integrity checks. They need to cap the price of each game at $5. And they have to contain safeguards against hackers.
The Minnesota Gambling Control Board could vote later this month on the equipment standards. The electronic pull-tabs and bingo games are central to a plan to retire hundreds of millions of dollars in public stadium debt.
The window for vendors and others to comment on the draft standards ended Monday. The goal is to have the expansion take hold by fall.
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