Topeka ? A district judge on Friday upheld a Kansas law allowing four state-owned casinos and slot machines at dog and horse tracks.

Shawnee County District Judge Charles Andrews’ ruling is an important step toward resolving the legal questions surrounding the law, enacted last year. But the Kansas Supreme Court is expected to have the final word.

Gov. Kathleen Sebelius had asked the attorney general to file a “friendly” lawsuit so legal questions surrounding the law could be resolved. She had feared developers wouldn’t commit to spending millions of dollars without a definitive court ruling.

In his ruling, Andrews noted that the question is not whether the new law is allowed by the Kansas Constitution but whether it is prohibited by the limitation on gambling in the constitution.

“That limitation is a state-owned and operated lottery,” Andrew wrote in his 41-page opinion.