Sooner or later, the state Legislature and Gov. Josh Shapiro will have to come to an agreement on a path forward for skill games that have popped up in bars, taverns, veterans halls and convenience stores throughout the state.

State courts have ruled the games aren’t illegal gambling because they are games of skill rather than games of chance that are limited to casinos. The state Supreme Court said last summer that it will consider an appeal by the state Attorney General’s office of a lower-court decision that found that what are often called skill games are based on a player’s ability — and not solely on chance, like slot machines and other traditional gambling games.

Once the courts have had their say, Gov. Josh Shapiro and state lawmakers should move quickly. Shapiro and state Sen. Gene Yaw, R-Lycoming, have differing ideas on how to tax and regulate skill games. State Sen. Amanda Cappelletti, D-Montgomery, wants to see skill games banned altogether.

Whether people are gambling on a skill game in a gas station or a game of chance in a casino, there is one incontrovertible truth that Shapiro and legislative leadership need to keep in mind. Video gaming too often entices players with the least money to lose. If the state is going to take the money from skill games, it should at the same time beef up the state’s support for problem gamblers. We are a state that is ill-equipped to provide gambling addiction support, particularly in rural areas that often don’t have enough mental health counselors as it is. Too often in these discussions state officials see tax revenue projections and forget the human costs that come with that tax revenue.

In our opinion the best path lies somewhere between the paths laid out by Cappelletti and Yaw. We don’t think lawmakers should be blinded by the flashing lights and sirens of new tax revenue. At the same time, the skill game cat has been out of the bag for more than half a decade in Pennsylvania, so it’s a little late now for a full ban – especially if the state Supreme Court rules the games are legal. That likely means state regulation that should, in our opinion, include more gambling addiction support than the state currently provides.