HARRISBURG -- The state House last night overwhelmingly approved more than 40 changes, many of them significant, to the law that will create 14 slots casinos in Pennsylvania.

The vote after more than two hours of heated debate was 161 to 30. The bill now goes to the Senate, which may act today.

House Majority Leader Sam Smith, R-Punxsutawney, urged his colleagues to approve the bill, which he called "a major improvement over the current gaming law."

Rep. Mike Turzai, R-Bradford Woods, agreed, calling it "a true gambling reform bill. It essentially eliminates slots suppliers and eliminates the 1 percent ownership interest for public officials."

The Senate doesn't have much time to debate the slots amendments because it plans to adjourn tonight and won't return for about a month.

The House last night agreed with a major move made by the Senate in late September, concerning who will have the authority to ban smoking in casinos.

Both chambers said that counties, cities or local municipalities wouldn't be allowed to impose smoking bans at casinos.

Mr. Smith said the Legislature would retain sole power to do that. And the Legislature isn't expected to ban smoking in casinos. Some lawmakers fear that bans on cigarettes would reduce the number of slots players and thus reduce the amount of revenue available to reduce property taxes.

Allegheny and Philadelphia counties have enacted smoking bans for workplaces, including restaurants, bars, taverns and casinos. But the county bans on casino smoking wouldn't be enforceable under the state amendment.

Rep. Dan Frankel, D-Squirrel Hill, criticized that portion of the bill, saying, "Local governments should be able to prohibit smoking in all public places, including casinos. We should protect the health of citizens."

Another part of the House bill concerned the issue of whether casinos will be able to give free or reduced price drinks to gamblers.

The House bill would transfer casino liquor regulation to the state Liquor Control Board -- for the next year.

The LCB would be told to issue "emergency regulations," meaning rules that don't have to go through extensive hearings, determining whether casinos can give free or reduced price drinks to gamblers.

That regulatory power will cease at the end of 2007, and the Legislature will once again decide what to do about liquor at casinos.

Other provisions in the House bill:

Local zoning authority in the state's two biggest cities would be pre-empted.

The House would give the state Gaming Control Board the power to regulate all casino-related zoning issues in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia.

In other words, local officials in those two cities -- the zoning board of adjustment, the city planning commission and City Council -- won't be able to administer and enforce zoning rules as they pertain to casinos.

The state gaming board will handle that job, but any decision it makes about zoning laws in relation to a casino can be appealed to court, Mr. Smith said.

Anne Swager, co-chair of the Pittsburgh Gaming Task Force, said it was "unconscionable to take zoning control away from Pittsburgh. The level of expertise and understanding of our urban planning issues cannot be matched by folks in Harrisburg. Zoning decisions should be made here."

Eliminate "market caps" on the purchase of slot machines.

Sen. Vincent Fumo, D-Philadelphia, wants to limit casinos to buying no more than 50 percent of their slot machines from any single manufacturer.

This is an effort to "cap'' the market share of International Game Technology, the nation's largest slots maker. Mr. Fumo said the market cap would end after three years. He wants to give smaller slots makers a better chance to compete with giant IGT for the first three years of casinos in Pennsylvania.

But Mr. Smith said, "Let the free market determine what machines are used in casinos.''

Eliminate slot machine suppliers.

The House bill also changes what the Senate did on the delicate issue of slots suppliers, also called distributors.

The Senate wanted to make the use of such middleman optional rather than mandatory, as they are now. So far, 17 middleman firms have been licensed by the gaming board. They would buy slots from manufacturers and re-sell them to casinos.

The House said supplier firms must be used for one year, or until their supplier licenses expire in late July 2007. After those licenses expire, the use of suppliers will be optional.

Sen. Jane Orie, R-McCandless, has been pushing to eliminate suppliers right now, and it isn't known yet if she will go along with the modified version in the House.

Increase funds to help compulsive gamblers get treatment to $4 million from the previous $1.5 million.

Allow a Gettysburg casino proposal.

The House agreed with the Senate in permitting a casino developer in Gettysburg to apply for a slots license. The House had initially banned casinos in Adams County, where Gettysburg is located. Civil War buffs have strongly objected to putting a casino near the battlefield.

The House bill also includes some good-government provisions that all legislators seem to agree on.

One would prohibit elected or public officials from owning up to 1 percent of a casino or gambling company. Act 71 permitted such ownership, which has drawn sharp criticism from the public.

Another amendment would give state Attorney General Tom Corbett more authority to investigate alleged wrongdoing at casinos. Act 71 reserved most of that power for the district attorney of the county where a casino was located.