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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
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Majority
Whip Bill DeWeese |
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DeWeese wants poker, black jack at casinos
16,000 jobs, $200 million for property tax relief could be generated
HARRISBURG, June 17 – Slots casinos in Pennsylvania could add poker, black jack, roulette and other table games, under legislation introduced this week by House Majority Whip Bill DeWeese.
"It’s not often during a downturn in the economy as we presently are experiencing, that we have the opportunity to create 16,000 jobs and generate upward of $300 million in revenue the first year. This expansion will bring additional patrons to the facilities as well because table games appeal to a different type of customer than slot machines. The expanded customer base likely will lead to even more economic development in the surrounding areas," said DeWeese, D-Greene/Fayette/Washington.
The legislation (House Bill 21) would permit table games at the state’s 14 slots facilities authorized by Act 71 of 2004. It is essentially the same as the one DeWeese introduced last session (H.B. 2121), but he made slight changes to the taxing structure and distribution formula.
DeWeese said that despite the recent state Supreme Court ruling allowing gaming entities to provide campaign contributions, he will not accept them and the legislation includes the prohibition language that was in the original slots law.
Some of the bill’s highlights:
· Licensees would pay a $10 million fee and $500,000 annual renewal fee;
· Table games would have a daily tax of 18 percent that would go to the state’s Property Tax Relief Fund to reduce school taxes and a local share assessment of 2 percent that would follow the same distribution as slots for host municipality and county projects;
· An additional 1 percent assessment of daily gross table game revenue would go to the Department of Agriculture for the Agriculture Education Loan Forgiveness program, agriculture and rural youth programs, payments to county agricultural societies that conduct harness racing at county agricultural fairs for track and stable repair and maintenance.
"The astounding recent popularity of poker by ESPN, celebrity tournaments, and local fund-raisers is making table games a much more popular form of gaming. Pennsylvania also must stay competitive with our neighboring states because if we don’t, the gaming dollars will go elsewhere," DeWeese said.
To remedy the concerns of some who believe all casinos should be open before expanding gaming, H.B. 21 includes a provision that requires any licensed facility to be open for one year before table games could be introduced at the venue.
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"There’s no practical difference between placing $20 in a slot machine versus putting it on a poker or black jack table, so I see no valid reason why we shouldn’t allow our successful slots casinos to add these options," DeWeese said. "The slots facilities will provide more than $600 million in property tax relief for homeowners this year alone and by adding table games we can generate hundreds of millions more dollars for tax cuts."
The legislation has 19 co-sponsors and was referred to the House Gaming Oversight Committee.
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