By: Nicholas Sohr

The Prince George’s County Council advanced a bill Tuesday that would ban slot machines from the county.

The bill cleared a committee vote 3-0 and still faces a vote of the full council. The legislation, as The Washington Post reports, could put County Executive Rushern Baker in a tough spot in Annapolis. Banning slots could take a bargaining chip off the table for Baker in his dealings with legislative leaders.

Further complicating the situation, Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller, a Prince George’s County Democrat, has supported bringing gambling to Rosecroft Raceway in Oxon Hill.

Penn National Gaming Inc., the owner of Rosecroft, is gearing up for a big push in the General Assembly to bring casino gambling to the track. The gaming company, which also owns Hollywood Casino Perryville in Cecil County, released a pair of studies last week that touted billions of dollars in potential economic impact and tax revenue a mega-casino at Rosecroft would have on the county and state.