HARRISBURG -- State gaming regulators have finally resolved a yearlong deadlock over procedures for granting slot machine supplier licenses, a decision that puts the state back on track to award some casino licenses by late September.

For months, the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board has been hung up on what seemed like a simple issue -- whether to divide the state into two regions and limit the suppliers to operating in only one of them, or to let them operate on a free-market basis in the state as a whole.

Yesterday, board member Jeffrey Coy, a former Democratic legislator who had been holding out for two regions, finally agreed with the other six board members to permit any licensed supplier to do business in the whole state.

The board then approved the first 12 license applications for the so-called middlemen who will buy slot machines from manufacturers and sell them to the 14 casinos to be created in the state.

That decision came despite the state Senate's action Tuesday night to eliminate suppliers from the 2004 slots law. The state House and Gov. Ed Rendell will have to agree before that change could take place, and House officials said they don't know when the issue might come up for a vote.

Gaming Chairman Tad Decker, a Philadelphia lawyer, said the board can deal only with the law as it is now written, which includes suppliers. If the General Assembly changes the law, the board would follow the revised law, he said, but he refused to speculate on what might happen to the suppliers approved yesterday.

There are 22 applications for the supplier licenses, but 12 were approved yesterday. It will still be a few weeks before the licenses are actually issued, because the successful firms each must first pay the state a $25,000 licensing fee, set up a warehouse -- to store the slot machines -- somewhere in the state, file paperwork with several state agencies, agree to withhold state taxes and comply with a couple of dozen other requirements.

Gaming board officials said they need additional information on the other 10 supplier applicants, but they will likely be licensed at some point in the future. Most of the firms approved yesterday were from Eastern Pennsylvania, and none of the local partnerships made up of prominent investors, lobbyists and former politicians have been approved yet.

Mr. Coy said one reason he changed his mind about the statewide suppliers is that he thinks progress has been made in getting some geographic and ethnic diversity in the location, employment and ownership of the supplier firms.

Under the July 2004 slots law, racetrack, stand-alone and resort hotel casinos can't be licensed until at least 90 days after slot machine suppliers and manufacturers are licensed. Some manufacturers were licensed months ago, but it was the inability of the board to figure out procedures for licensing suppliers that threatened to delay the onset of casinos.

With the logjam over suppliers finally broken, the 90-day clock for issuing the first casino licenses has been started.. Mr. Decker said the board now could license up to six racetrack/casinos by late September, and they could be in operation by November-December.

The seventh and final racetrack/casino license has been delayed by the state Harness Racing Commission's delay in issuing a racing license.

Mr. Decker said the gaming board would likely approve licenses for up to five stand-alone, or non-track, casinos, by December. They may take longer to get into operation because of the considerable construction needed for them.

Among the 12 suppliers approved yesterday are Advanced Gaming Associates, Lucky Sevens Distributing LLC, Patriot Gaming & Electronics Inc., and Modern Gaming Pennsylvania LLC. They have up to a year to establish headquarters somewhere in Pennsylvania, but the locations aren't known yet.

Others include Betson Coin-OP Distributing Co., with two locations, West Carson Street in Pittsburgh and King of Prussia near Philadelphia; Pennsylvania Coin & Slot LLC in Bucks County; TDN Money Systems in Delaware County; PA Gaming Supply Co. of Scranton; PAP Security Printing Inc. of Lancaster; Currency Counting Consultants Inc. of King of Prussia; Parkside Gaming LLC of New Castle, Lawrence County; and PENNSLOT Inc. of Montgomery County near Philadelphia.

The as-yet unapproved supplier firms include some linked to notable politicians. Former Allegheny County Chief Executive Jim Roddey is part of New Century Entertainment; former Pittsburgh Councilman Sala Udin is part of Gaming Ventures LLC; and former Lt. Gov. Mark Singel is part of Revenco Gaming LLC.