The game rooms shut down in July 2016, when the Hidalgo County District Attorney’s Office raided eight establishments. Sullivan City charged $3,000 per year for a permit and a quarterly fee of $750 per machine. In Willacy County and Zapata County, game rooms with government permits operate openly.ĭozens of game rooms set up shop in western Hidalgo County during 2015, when Sullivan City and La Joya started handing out permits. The Hidalgo County Sheriff’s Office regularly shuts down underground game rooms and seizes tens of thousands of dollars in cash. Game rooms, though, remain big business in the Rio Grande Valley. “In my opinion, I think it’s all illegal,” said Hidalgo County District Attorney Terry Palacios. In an attempt to avoid legal problems, some game rooms purchase so-called “sweepstakes” machines and pay winners with silver. The state also prohibits amusement devices from rewarding players with cash. Traditional slot machines aren’t legal in Texas. Whether or not the devices are legal depends on how the games work and what the players win. In Texas, where gambling is tightly regulated, game rooms operate in a legal gray area.Ĭustomers pay to play casino-style games on devices that mimic slot machines. (Photo by Dave Hendricks / The Progress Times.)
A Starr County game room in September 2015.
