Wednesday could mark the start of a loser-leaves-town match between the state and World Wrestling Entertainment, with millions of dollars at stake.

A state Senate committee is scheduled to meet at 2:30 p.m. to discuss a bill that not only would eliminate the exemption that has spared the WWE from state regulation but also would subject performers to random drug tests.

The WWE is exempted from state regulation due to a July 2005 statute that excludes organizations with assets of more than $25 million. The professional wrestling organization has threatened to pull out of Georgia if that exemption is lifted.

The added restrictions are the latest fallout for the WWE since professional wrestler Chris Benoit killed his wife and 7-year-old son before taking his own life in the family's Fayetteville home in late June.

"I'm very disappointed," said John Taylor, the WWE's Atlanta attorney, "because they appeared to have ignored the very real distinction between professional wrestling, boxing, mixed martial arts and kickboxing. I'm afraid they're trying to run out a business that has been here since the 1950s."

Senate Bill 413, introduced last week by Senate President Pro Tem Eric Johnson (R-Savannah), would put the WWE under the purview of the Georgia Athletic and Entertainment Commission, commonly called the Boxing Commission. If passed, WWE performers would be subject to random drug testing, physical exams prior to matches and other forms of regulation.

Johnson conceded that professional wrestling isn't the same as boxing or mixed martial arts, but added he wasn't worried about running the WWE from the state either.

"Who's going to walk away from one of the largest states in the country?" he asked. "They'll stay where the money is."

The legislation could have a more adverse effect on the many smaller professional wrestling organizations throughout the state. Other proposed rules include mandating ringside doctors and medical personnel and licensing managers, promoters, trainers, timers, judges and announcers.

The state would have the power to refuse a license to an applicant who has exhibited "unprofessional or unethical conduct."

The issue is sure to strike a chord in Georgia, where professional wrestling tradition runs deep.

The WWE accounted for nearly $2 million in tax revenue to the state in 2007 from shows in Atlanta, Augusta, Savannah and Columbus, according to records released by the WWE. Performances in Atlanta accounted for more than $1 million.

Atlanta had been "on the short list" for the WWE's "WrestleMania" for 2010, Taylor said. The three-day extravaganza generated nearly $30 million in tax revenue for Detroit in 2007, according to a study by the Enigma Research Corp.