       A proposal to let people play keno on their mobile phones in Nebraska bars and keno parlors is dead after lawmakers stripped it out of a casino legalization bill.Â
Lawmakers voted 27-11 to remove the provision from a broader bill regulating Nebraska’s new casino industry created when voters in November legalized casinos at horse-race tracks despite opposition that included Gov. Pete Ricketts.
The constitutional amendment didn’t directly address keno, but supporters of allowing games on mobile phones argued that casinos will end up hurting keno, which generates millions of dollars in tax revenue for Nebraska cities each year.
Under current state law, keno is still played with paper cards, while casinos offer flashier, computerized games.