INDIANAPOLIS —
When Indiana lawmakers first opened the door to legalized gambling 21 years ago, they were reluctant to bet it would become a stable source of revenue for the state treasury.
But as a series of recent reports show, state and local budgets in Indiana have grown dependent on the millions of tax dollars generated by games of chance, from lottery tickets to penny slot machines. And as legalized gambling has expanded, Indiana has moved up in the ranks of total gaming revenues.
Last year, the state became the third largest gaming destination in the nation, behind Nevada and New Jersey. This week, The Associated Press reported that Indiana was No. 2, behind Pennsylvania, in taxes collected from casino gambling.
That’s been good news for local and state governments that have used the money to replace dwindling revenues from other sources. But odds are against it continuing as Indiana faces increasing competition from neighboring states, including Ohio, which legalized casino gambling in the fall.
“We’ve become addicted to gaming revenues,” said Ed Feigenbaum, editor of the Indiana Gaming Insight, the state’s leading source for news on the gambling industry.
Exactly how much money is coming into state and local governments from all sources of legalized gambling in Indiana is hard to track, given the many sources of gambling dollars coming into the state and the various agencies that keep track of it.
The Hoosier Lottery, which launched legalized gambling in 1989, reported a 17.5 percent decline in revenues in fiscal 2009. It has yet to publish its annual report for fiscal 2010.
There are numbers, though, that offer some revelation about Indiana’s legalized gambling venues — from riverboat casinos to charity bingos — that, according to Feigenbaum, grossed more than $4 billion last year alone.
For example, according to the Indiana Gaming Commission’s monthly reports posted online, gamblers spent $2.7 billion at the state’s 13 casino properties — including slot-machine casinos at two racetracks — in fiscal 2010, ending June 30. From that, the casinos paid more than $872 million in admission and wagering taxes.
More than $558 million of that went into the state’s general fund, according to a state’s most recent budget report. The rest of the money was divvied up among state and local entities, with more than $33 million going to Indiana county governments.
A recent issue of Indiana Gaming Insight reveals a rise in gross revenues from charity gaming — the bingos, raffles and other gambling venues conducted by churches and social organizations and regulated by state government. They reported $538 million in gross revenues in fiscal 2009, the latest year available. That’s the highest level in five years.
Another number recently released by the Indiana Alcohol and Tobacco Commission: $67 million spent on “pull-tab” gambling in bars and taverns in Indiana between April 20, 2009, and April 19, 2010. Exactly how much tax revenue that’s generated for the state has yet to be published, but Feigenbaum said it will be significant.
All those numbers mean one thing, said Feigenbaum: Indiana has a gambling habit.
“For a state that went into legalized gambling with a lot of reservations,” he said, “we’ve not just accepted it, we’ve embraced it.”
— Maureen Hayden is statehouse bureau chief for CNHI’s Indiana newspapers. She can be reached at maureen.hayden@indianamediagroup.com.
Entertainment News
Gambling brings billions of dollars to state
According to report, state’s casinos paid $872M in taxes in fiscal 2010
- Entertainment News
-
-
Sweat Equity
-
Steamboat Museum will dedicate Pilothouse at June 9 ceremony
The bell from the steamboat Mississippi Queen will also be dedicated at this time.
The Mississippi Queen was built at JeffBoat in 1976 and scrapped in 2011. -
Movie preview: "Men In Black 3”
Plot: After 15 years of working with aliens from all across the cosmos, Agent J (Will Smith) is sure he's seen it all. But just when he's getting the hang of the game, he learns that history has inexplicably been rewritten.
-
Movie preview: "Chernobyl Diaries”
Plot: An extreme vacation turns terrifying when a group of friends visit the Chernobyl disaster site, then find themselves stranded in the abandoned city only to discover that they are not alone.
-
Miss Clark County 2012 entrants sought
The contest is based on interview, evening gown and professional wear competition. Any Clark County young woman between the ages of 16 to 21 is eligible to participate.
-
New Albany public art walk just a month away
The art walk runs from 6 to 9 p.m. and will begin at the Carnegie Center for Art and History, located at 201 E. Spring St. Along with artists, historians and community leaders will be on hand to discuss the themes as interpreted through the installations.
-
Rebuild Marysville event raises money for town hit by tornado
Kirsty Travelstead of Marysville explained that as of Saturday morning, more than 300 T-shirts had been sold. For the event they had hopes of raising at least $5,000 from the T-shirts, food sales and the grill raffle.
-
Down & dirty
-
Chautauqua draws a crowd to Jeffersonville
-
‘Swim Club’ a great opener to Derby Dinner’s season
- More Entertainment News Headlines
-
Raw Video: 19 Dead in Qatar Shopping Mall Fire
Beryl Makes Landfall on Florida Coast
Service Dogs Help Wash. Soldiers Battling PTSD
Raw Video: Heckler Bursts in on Blair Testimony
Japan Farmers Plant, Seek Radiation-free Rice
UN Blames Syrian Forces for Shelling Houla
Raw Video: Gay Protest Blocked in Moscow
Vatican in Chaos After Butler Arrested for Leaks
Jimmy Carter Endorses Egypt's Election Results
Biden Addresses West Point Graduating Class
Dozens of Children Killed in New Syria Attack
Raw Video: Activists Allege Massacre in Syria
NJ Man Charged With Murder in Death of Patz
Support, Fun for Kids of Fallen Soldiers at Camp
Fugitive Penguin Caught, Returned to Aquarium
50 Years Later, Underground Fire Still Burning
Light Show Transforms Sydney Opera House
Raw Video: Unruly Passenger Restrained in Miami
Raw Video: Robber Uses Drive-thru Window
Raw Video: Dragon Arrives at Space Station
