Virginia SB756: Fairfax County Casino Bypasses Voter Referendum

Elvis Blane

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March 15, 2026

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The Virginia Senate has approved SB756, a bill that clears the way for a temporary casino in Fairfax County without first holding a local voter referendum, a significant departure from the process every other Virginia casino locality has followed. Sponsored by Senator Scott Surovell and finalized through a Joint Conference Committee compromise, the legislation caps the temporary facility at 150,000 square feet, a footprint comparable to MGM National Harbor in Maryland. The move sets up a high-stakes political and legal debate over democratic process, local governance, and the future of gaming in Northern Virginia.

Virginia Senate Passes SB756, Authorizing 150,000 Sq Ft Temporary Casino Without Public Vote

What SB756 Actually Says

SB756, passed by the Virginia Senate in 2025, authorizes a temporary casino facility in Fairfax County before residents cast a single vote on whether they want one. The bill emerged from a Joint Conference Committee compromise, meaning it represents a negotiated middle ground between competing legislative priorities rather than a straightforward policy push. Senator Scott Surovell, the bill’s primary sponsor, framed the temporary authorization as a tool to encourage cooperation from the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, signaling that the legislation is as much a political maneuver as a gaming policy decision.

The 150,000-square-foot cap is not a small number. MGM National Harbor, one of the most prominent casino resorts on the East Coast, operates at a comparable scale, drawing millions of visitors annually to its location in Prince George’s County, Maryland. Authorizing a facility of that size on a “temporary” basis, without a prior public referendum, is a structural anomaly in Virginia’s gaming framework. Every other locality that hosts a casino in Virginia, including Bristol, Danville, Norfolk, and Portsmouth, held a voter referendum before any permanent or temporary operation received authorization [1].

The bill does include a safeguard: if Fairfax County voters subsequently reject a permanent casino in a referendum, the temporary facility must shut down. That condition does not eliminate the referendum requirement entirely, but it does invert the typical sequence, allowing a large commercial operation to open and establish itself before voters weigh in.

The Role of the Joint Conference Committee

Virginia’s Joint Conference Committee process brings together members of both the House of Delegates and the Senate to resolve differences between competing versions of a bill. The fact that SB756 emerged from this process suggests the original legislation faced significant resistance in at least one chamber. Senator Surovell’s office has not publicly detailed what concessions were made to reach the final compromise text, but the 150,000-square-foot limit and the post-referendum shutdown clause appear to be the key guardrails that made the bill passable.

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors has historically been cautious about casino development, citing concerns about traffic, community character, and the social costs of gambling. Surovell’s stated goal of using the temporary authorization to encourage Board cooperation suggests the Virginia Senate is applying legislative pressure on a local governing body that has not enthusiastically embraced casino expansion. That dynamic raises questions about the appropriate boundary between state legislative authority and local self-determination under Virginia gaming law.

How SB756 Affects Fairfax County’s 1.1 Million Residents and Local Government

Residents Lose the First Vote, But Not the Final One

Fairfax County is Virginia’s most populous jurisdiction, home to approximately 1.15 million residents as of the 2020 U.S. Census. Under SB756, those residents would not vote on whether a temporary casino opens, only on whether a permanent one follows. That distinction matters enormously in practice: once a 150,000-square-foot facility is built, employing hundreds of workers and generating tax revenue, the political and economic momentum behind keeping it open becomes substantial. Voters in a subsequent referendum would not be evaluating an abstract proposal but an operating business with established community ties.

Opponents of the bill argue this sequencing creates a fait accompli, making it politically difficult for voters to reject the permanent casino even if they would have opposed it from the start. Proponents, including Senator Surovell, counter that the temporary authorization simply accelerates economic development in a county that stands to benefit from new tax revenue and tourism spending. Fairfax County’s proximity to Washington, D.C., and its large, affluent population make it one of the most commercially attractive casino markets on the East Coast [1].

Board of Supervisors Caught Between State and Voters

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors now faces a complicated position. State law, if SB756 is signed by the Governor, would authorize a temporary casino, but local officials would still control zoning, permitting, and site selection. The Board could theoretically slow-walk those processes, but doing so would put it in direct conflict with a state legislative mandate. Senator Surovell’s framing of the bill as an incentive for Board cooperation implies that resistance could invite further state-level intervention in local gaming decisions.

The Board’s caution has not been without basis. A 2023 analysis by the Virginia Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission found that casino revenues in Virginia’s first operational facilities came in below initial projections in their opening years, though figures improved as facilities matured [1]. That track record gives local officials legitimate grounds to proceed carefully, even as the state pushes for faster development.

Virginia’s Casino Market in 2025: Five Localities, One Outlier

Virginia legalized commercial casino gambling through legislation passed in 2020, designating five specific localities as eligible hosts: Bristol, Danville, Norfolk, Portsmouth, and Richmond. Each of those localities held a voter referendum before any facility could open, a requirement embedded in the original gaming law to ensure community consent [1]. Fairfax County was not part of that original cohort, and adding it required separate legislation, which is precisely what SB756 represents.

The Northern Virginia gaming market is widely considered the most lucrative untapped casino opportunity in the mid-Atlantic region. MGM National Harbor, located just across the Potomac River in Maryland, generated over $700 million in gaming revenue in fiscal year 2023 according to the Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Agency, with a significant portion of that revenue coming from Virginia residents making the short drive across the state line [1]. Capturing even a fraction of that cross-border spending is the core economic argument for a Fairfax County casino.

The competitive pressure from Maryland is real and well-documented. Virginia legislators have cited MGM National Harbor’s proximity repeatedly in debates about Northern Virginia gaming, arguing that the state loses hundreds of millions of dollars in annual tax revenue to Maryland because no comparable facility exists on the Virginia side. SB756 is, at its core, a revenue recapture strategy dressed in the language of economic development.

Whether a temporary facility of 150,000 square feet can meaningfully compete with an established resort like MGM National Harbor, which includes a hotel, multiple restaurants, and an entertainment venue, remains an open question. A temporary casino without those amenities may attract casual gamblers but struggle to pull destination visitors away from a fully built-out competitor just miles away.

A Note for Health-Conscious Readers: Gambling, Stress, and Your Wellbeing

For readers focused on dental and cosmetic health, the connection here is indirect but worth a brief mention. Research published in the Journal of the American Dental Association has linked chronic stress and financial anxiety, both of which can be associated with problem gambling, to increased rates of bruxism (teeth grinding), gum disease, and neglected oral hygiene. If casino expansion in your region raises concerns about community health, including mental health and financial stress, those concerns have a documented downstream effect on physical health outcomes, including oral health.

If you or someone you know is affected by problem gambling, the National Problem Gambling Helpline operates 24 hours a day at 1-800-522-4700. Maintaining regular dental check-ups and managing stress through evidence-based methods remains the best protection against stress-related oral health conditions, regardless of what happens in the Virginia legislature.

Key Takeaways

• The Virginia Senate passed SB756 in 2025, authorizing a temporary casino in Fairfax County before a local voter referendum takes place.
• The temporary facility is capped at 150,000 square feet, a size comparable to MGM National Harbor in Prince George’s County, Maryland.
• Senator Scott Surovell, the bill’s sponsor, stated the temporary authorization is designed to encourage cooperation from the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors.
• If voters reject a permanent casino in a subsequent referendum, the temporary facility must close, but the referendum comes after, not before, the facility opens.
• Every other Virginia casino locality, including Bristol, Danville, Norfolk, Portsmouth, and Richmond, held a voter referendum before any facility received authorization.
• MGM National Harbor generated over $700 million in gaming revenue in fiscal year 2023, much of it from Virginia residents, making Fairfax County a high-priority revenue recapture target for state legislators.
• The bill emerged from a Joint Conference Committee compromise, indicating it faced significant legislative resistance before reaching its final form.

Frequently Asked Questions

The Bottom Line

SB756 represents a significant shift in how Virginia approaches casino authorization. By allowing a temporary facility to open before voters weigh in, the Virginia Senate has effectively changed the sequence of consent, letting commercial operations establish themselves before the public decides whether it wants them. That is not inherently illegal, but it is a meaningful departure from the democratic process Virginia applied to every other casino locality since 2020.

The economic logic is clear: Fairfax County sits next to one of the most profitable casino markets on the East Coast, and Virginia has watched Maryland collect hundreds of millions in tax revenue from Virginia residents for years. SB756 is a direct response to that fiscal reality. Whether the political cost, bypassing local voters on a facility the size of MGM National Harbor, is worth the economic gain is a question Fairfax County residents will eventually answer at the ballot box, just not before the doors open.

The bill still requires the Governor’s signature to become law, and the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors retains control over zoning and permitting. The next 12 months will determine whether Virginia’s most populous county becomes home to the state’s most politically contentious casino.

Sources

1. Casino.org – Reporting on Virginia SB756, the Fairfax County temporary casino authorization, Senator Scott Surovell’s statements, and comparative Virginia gaming locality data including MGM National Harbor revenue figures.