Although there is roughly one month until the start of the legislative session, opponents and proponents of gambling expansion throughout the state of Georgia have already taken actions towards defending their point of view.
A couple of weeks ago, a specially appointed study committee met three times with the aim of investigating all advantages and disadvantages a potential gambling expansion in Georgia would bring about. However, the committee chairman, Matt Ramsey, announced that no decision is to be made before the beginning of January when the lawmakers’ new session starts.
Meanwhile, the slight delay in solving the issue did not prevent the interested parties from outlining their plans for establishing casino resorts on the territory of the Peach state. During the first panel meeting, Jim Murren, the chairman of MGM, hinted at company’s interest in building a casino resort, featuring gambling and entertaining facilities.
Currently, MGM has a total of 14 lobbyists committed to defending company’s interests. However, MGM has to face several opponents that have also appointed lobbyists. Boyd Gaming Corp and Penn National Gaming, both running successful gambling businesses in Louisiana and Mississippi, have also registered their lobbyists.
As for the opponents of the idea, they relentlessly seek ways for preventing the expansion of the gambling sector. They have already sent out flyers warning the residents about the increased addiction, crime and corruption rates the gambling expansion inevitably brings about.
For the time being, the Georgian gambling market is largely untapped and limited to the state lottery. All previous attempts for legalizing casinos and horse racing activities have failed. Georgia gambling enthusiasts have no other option but to travel to the nearby casinos operated by Indian tribes.
Back in the summer, a new Indian casino opened doors in North Carolina. In addition, the Seminole tribe in Florida is yet to receive a legislative approval to install table games at the existing venues, which is expected to lure even more Georgia-based players.
The establishment of casino venues in Georgia is said to be beneficial to the merit-based HOPE scholarship. According to Rep. Ron Stephens’s proposal, two casinos are to be opened in metro Atlanta and another four near the state borders with the aim of limiting the number of players visiting casinos in the neighbouring states. A 12% of gross gambling revenue will be imposed on Georgia-based casinos and as much as 90% of the total revenue is to be set aside for educational purposes.
However, there is another side of the coin. The eventual expansion of the gambling sector would have an extremely negative impact on the state-run lottery revenue, which made Gov. Nathan Deal announce that he would reconsider his standpoint on the matter provided that higher tax rate come into force.
