The question related to the bailout package of the Delaware-based casinos is back on the agenda but it seems it will face additional hurdles mainly because of the economy issues that have befallen the state.
Back in January, the Delaware Lottery and Gaming Study Commission suggested a resolution according to which the Delaware Park, Harrington Raceway & Casino and Dover Downs will be given a tax relief amounting $46 million over a two-year period.
However, no considerable progress has been made since then and the Senate Finance Committee is yet to approve the proposal. Actually, a few weeks ago, the Delaware officials proposed the aforementioned tax collections to be reduced to $45 million.
Tom Cook, the Secretary of Finance of the state, was reached for a comment and said that despite the delay, the projection of the Commission has been taken into account and it influenced the spending plans. He also added that the next couple of months are expected to be pretty eventful due to the important discussions that are going to take place.
It is a well-known fact that the increased competition from the neighboring states was not favorable to the Delaware-based casinos and they have been trying to find a solution to this problem for quite some time.
According to the proposal of the gaming commission, casinos should be spared from paying an annual fee that enables them to provide table games such as roulette and blackjack.
In addition, the Commission members demand a smaller taxation to be imposed on revenues from table games. Instead, the slot machines revenues are expected to compensate and the horse racing sector is also likely to benefit from that.
The proposed plan consists of two phases. During the first one, almost $16 million will be spent. During the second phase, Delaware casinos will be given a 5% tax credit and the sum will depend on the annual revenues generated from slot machines.
People with knowledge on the matter estimated that the sum is likely to exceed $30 million.
The sponsor of the bill, Senator Brian Bushweller, said that he is still hopeful that an agreement can be reached but on the other hand, he is well-aware of the fact that the financial issues are among the reasons for postponing the start of any debates.
He also added that he is open for discussions provided that anyone else has an idea, better than his proposal, that would be helpful for the economy and the prevention of layoffs in particular.
In point of fact, casino managers seem pessimistic about the upcoming changes. The head of Dover Downs, Denis McGlynn, said that there were a lot of things that need to be ironed out and the outcome of the proposed amendments is still uncertain. He also said that he did not expect the changes to take place anytime soon.
