HARRISBURG -- As some restaurant and tavern owners complained about a bill that allows casinos to serve unlimited free drinks to gamblers, General Assembly critics assailed the state legislators for again enacting a major proposal late at night without adequate public input.

"This is the same kind of stealth legislation that happened with the original slots law and the legislative pay raise," complained Tim Potts, head of Democracy Rising PA, a citizens group formed last year to fight the pay raises.

He said the state constitution requires the House to openly debate a bill on three different occasions and then the Senate to discuss it on three other days before a vote is held. He contended that procedure was violated when Act 71, the slot machine law, was enacted about 4 a.m. on July 4, 2004, and again when the 16 percent to 34 percent legislative pay raise measure was enacted at 2 a.m. on July 7, 2005.

As for the free liquor measure, Mr. Potts said, "once again they didn't give citizens a chance to express their opinions before acting on a bill. The governor should veto this, if he has any respect for citizens and communities where casinos will unleash hordes of drunks upon the roads and sidewalks. People have a right to express their opinions on an issue before a vote is taken."

The last-minute vote "violated the spirit of reform of the legislative process," agreed Matthew Brouillette, president of the Commonwealth Foundation, a conservative group. "In this year's elections, voters clearly said, 'no more shenanigans,' so it's disappointing that legislators decided to engage in that same old practice."

Mr. Brouillette, who is frequently at the Capitol monitoring legislation, said, "I hadn't heard a word about this bill. It wasn't on anybody's radar screen."

Late Tuesday night, just minutes before they ended the 2005-06 session, the House and Senate enacted a change to the state liquor code, permitting casinos to offer free drinks to anyone playing slot machines from 7 a.m. to 2 a.m., seven days a week.

It was the final act of an often tumultuous two-year session that saw the largest turnover in the Legislature in two decades, as 24 incumbents were defeated for re-election and 31 others retired rather than face angry voters.

Legislators who supported the free liquor policy for casinos said it was needed so Pennsylvania slots parlors can fairly compete with racetrack and stand-alone casinos in Atlantic City, N.J., Delaware and other states, which are permitted to serve free drinks to gamblers 24 hours a day, every day.

State Sen. Sean Logan of Monroeville, the Democratic chairman of the Senate Law and Justice Committee, which handles liquor issues, disputed Mr. Potts' criticism of legislative procedure.

Mr. Logan said his committee, as well as lawmakers in general, "have been talking about the free drink issue ever since Act 71 became law over two years ago. There was plenty of discussion."

He said Pennsylvania needs "to keep our casinos on a level playing field."

As to claims the policy will simply encourage overuse of alcohol, Mr. Logan said, "That's nonsense. A casino owner will not jeopardize his casino license and his liquor license by overserving someone. Legislators cannot be the moral police. We can't ban alcohol in every situation. We aren't going back to the days of Prohibition [in the 1920s]."

Other criticism of the free liquor policy was voiced by owners of bars, taverns and restaurants, especially some in Pittsburgh, which will have one non-racetrack casino.

"It's bad public policy that will devastate some taverns that are particularly close to the casinos," said John Milliron, a lobbyist for the 2,000-member Pennsylvania Tavern Association. "The whole bill is horrible. It's outrageous."

Supporters of the free liquor policy for casinos "keep saying it's not going to hurt too much," he said, "but what's too much? Five percent [of business lost]? Ten percent? These tavern owners work on an 8 percent profit margin. You don't have to have every customer leaving for it to hurt."

"If you're going to allow casinos to give away unlimited free drinks, let everyone do it," said Kevin Joyce, owner of The Carlton restaurant in Pittsburgh and chairman of the Pennsylvania Restaurant Association board.

"It's not legal for me to advertise saying 'Come to The Carlton and I'll give you a free bottle of wine.' It's not legal to entice people to patronize your business by giving them free alcohol."

As to the late-night way the bill was passed, Mr. Joyce said, "We all understand the concept of giving free drinks at casinos ... but it's not something that was discussed during the legislative year. It came as an amendment to a bill that wasn't even about casinos. It didn't have the same discussion as a bill that's passed in a different way."

Mr. Joyce added, "I don't think there was an adequate discussion among the stakeholders. When the House passed this bill [on liquor code changes] two weeks ago, there was nothing in it about casinos. It should have been discussed along with the other [changes] casinos want, such as exemption from smoking bans and a provision to serve alcohol 24 hours a day."

The bill, which still needs Gov. Ed Rendell's signature before becoming law, allows free liquor only for gamblers actually playing the slots from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m.

State Sen. Robert Mellow, D-Lackawanna, said the policy could be expanded to 24 hours a day, seven days a week, once the Legislature returns in January. That 24-hour policy is in effect for casinos in other states, he said.

As to how much business he might lose to casinos, Mr. Joyce said, "It's hard to say, but we've never been a big supporter of gaming because it is another competitor for disposable income."

It isn't known yet if Mr. Rendell will sign the free liquor bill. He is expected to decide within 10 days, said aide Chuck Ardo.

The governor "will take his time and listen to all sides. He will receive the views, in writing, of anyone interested in the alcohol management policies at casinos. He will also get input from opponents of the measure," Mr. Ardo said.

If the free liquor policy does become law, he said, the governor "wants to ensure that drinks are handed out [to slots players] in a responsible manner," and that gamblers who are already inebriated aren't served.

Mr. Ardo said the casino liquor legislation "isn't something the governor sponsored or sought." But, he added, "it's not something he would oppose out of hand."