EBENSBURG — Representatives of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 4963 left the Borough Council’s meeting Monday with a sigh of relief after opposing a proposed ordinance relating to amusement and gaming devices during public comment.

A proposal of the borough’s gaming license ordinance would have regulated and required a license for amusement and gaming devices. In June, council members agreed to support annual fees of $250 for every gaming device that pays out and $100 per device that doesn’t pay out and advised their solicitor to draft the proposal for review.

VFW Junior Vice Commander Brandon Kopp said he feels the fees would have had a negative impact on the VFW’s charitable contributions to other local, state and national organizations.

Those donations include supporting local school programs, the Cambria County Historical Society, the Young Peoples Community Center and local emergency services, he said.

The funds raised from the VFW’s five machines also assist in their volunteer efforts, like providing military funeral honors at no cost to local veterans as well as placing and retrieving flags at local veterans’ grave markers, he said.

“We recommend an exemption for nonprofit organizations from the proposed mechanical device tax. The handful of machines that we have are for members only,” Kopp said while addressing council members, noting the machines are either turned off or moved to an unseen area during public events.

Philip Rice, a commander of the American Legion Post No. 363 and fourth-generation Ebensburg resident, agreed with Kopp.

“I’d like to echo Brandon’s comments and ask that the borough please consider the many cultural, social and financial contributions that nonprofits in Ebensburg make to this community,” Rice said. “Please exempt them from any fees in the gaming ordinance.”

The proposed drafted ordinance was ultimately tabled Monday, with several members of council stating concerns that state officials may soon regulate gaming devices in the future.

That would leave “a very small amount” of consideration for the borough’s enforcement, if council decided to move forward with enacting the ordinance, council President Doug Tusing said.

“Is it worth setting up a system? My personal opinion is it’s probably not,” Tusing said, adding the council could revisit the idea. “I think the time has come when the state realizes they’re missing out on too much money.”

After council members tabled the ordinance, Tusing said he has “significant doubts” that they will ever enact it in the future.

After the meeting, Kopp said he was glad the council took his comments under consideration.

“It seems that, if they move forward with anything, it would exempt the nonprofits from that,” Kopp said. “We’re just glad to be able to keep those funds and revenues as is.”

During the meeting, council members also voted to OK proposed changes to its zoning ordinance regulating the location and zoning of certain commercial uses in the borough, including gaming parlors, hookah bars, marijuana dispensaries, Cannabidiol (CBD) stores, vape shops and tobacco stores.

The updated ordinance will be referred to Cambria County officials and the borough’s planning commission, according to the meeting’s agenda. After the planning commission approves of the updates, a public hearing will be held before the ordinance gets final approval from council members at a future meeting, Tusing said.

“Essentially what we’re saying is this is the ordinance that we want to propose and then we’ll go through the process with that,” he said.