Comment of the day: some reality-based numbers on casinos
Ryan Adams quite correctly pointed out the value of the Lottery to Massachusetts cities and towns:
another glaring thing here, beyond the jobs,
is the state lottery. Too many people are completely ignoring what slot machines would do to the state lottery which, like it or not, this state depends on at this point.
In Las Vegas, it takes 266 casinos to
bring in $11.6 billion in gross
revenue,
which translates into $924 million in
tax revenue.
The state lottery of Massachusetts brings in more revenue than Las Vegas's 266 casinos.
If it takes a 10% hit -- which is a fairly conservative number -- it will be very difficult for the state to bring in enough slot tax revenue to offset the 100 million we'd lose to the state lottery.
IMO, it's impossible to break even with the state lottery losses after you take into consideration the hundreds of millions that would have to go into a Gaming Commission, extra personnel for the State Police and Attorney General's Office (to the tune hundreds of employees, if NJ is any indication), and mitigation expenses for local communities. This is what Dan Bosley's been screaming about for years, though he's been largely ignored. We don't make any money from this, period.
So, when proponents say, "well, we allow the state lottery, why shouldn't we allow casinos?" tell them it's a bit more complicated than that. Barring a solution that would prevent the state lottery from being cannibalized, or would tax slot machines at a rate similar to that of the state lottery, no one should be able to use the state lottery as a defense of supporting slots when it's one of the biggest examples of why we can't afford slots in Massachusetts to begin with.
IMO, it's impossible to break even with the state lottery losses after you take into consideration the hundreds of millions that would have to go into a Gaming Commission, extra personnel for the State Police and Attorney General's Office (to the tune hundreds of employees, if NJ is any indication), and mitigation expenses for local communities. This is what Dan Bosley's been screaming about for years, though he's been largely ignored. We don't make any money from this, period.
So, when proponents say, "well, we allow the state lottery, why shouldn't we allow casinos?" tell them it's a bit more complicated than that. Barring a solution that would prevent the state lottery from being cannibalized, or would tax slot machines at a rate similar to that of the state lottery, no one should be able to use the state lottery as a defense of supporting slots when it's one of the biggest examples of why we can't afford slots in Massachusetts to begin with.
The Spectrum Gaming Report, for which Massachusetts taxpayers paid $189,000 projected Lottery losses of $144 million - their figure, not mine. That represents a direct reduction of local aid to cities and towns.
Spectrum: $144 Million Lottery Loss/Local Aid Cuts
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