Supporters of the legalization of casino gambling in Nebraska announced that they had launched petitions for the inclusion of a casino question in the 2016 ballot. So far, they have collected a total of $250,000 for their initiative.
According to the group that calls itself Keep the Money in Nebraska, almost all of the money had been contributed by Ho-Chunk Inc., known to be the Winnebago Tribe’s wing for economic development.
The petition group also announced on Tuesday that its members are to hit the streets so as to collect the necessary signatures for the inclusion of the above-mentioned question for the addition of casinos at the state’s racetracks. Currently, there are five such venues within Nebraska’s borders.
Scott Lautenbaugh, former State Senator of Omaha and spokesman for Keep the Money in Nebraska, said that they would like to give state residents the chance to voice their opinion on the proposed expansion of the gambling industry. He also noted that this would help the state’s struggling horse racing industry.
Mr. Lautenbaugh further commented that the legalization of casinos is really important as Nebraska has lost billions of dollars in recent years to gambling venues located in neighboring states.
The money for the new petitions has come from three horse racing-related groups. Ho-Chunk, owner of Atokad Park, which is closed at present, had contributed a total of $226,146 to the petition effort. The Horsemen’s Benevolent & Protective Association, representing Nebraska’s horse trainers and owners, had donated $11,200, and Omaha Exposition & Racing, which runs simulcast gambling venues in Lincoln and Omaha, had given $17,500.
Mr. Lautenbaugh explained that one of the petitions calls for a constitutional amendment that would allow the provision of games of chance at certain locations. The other petitions call for the introduction of certain laws that would allow the addition of casino offering at the state’s licensed racetracks and that would determine the way tax revenue from casino gambling would be distributed.
Keep the Money in Nebraska proposed a 20% tax on gross gaming revenues. Three-quarters of the money is to be contributed to the state coffers and the rest is to go to the communities that would host the casinos.
The group will have to collect valid signatures from 10% of the registered voters within the state’s borders, or about 114,000 people, in order for the constitutional amendment petition to be included in the November 2016 ballot. Valid signatures from 7% of the registered voters, which is about 80,000 people, would need to be collected in order for the proposed laws to be voted on. The signatures will have to be collected before July 7.
Although the casino campaign has many staunch supporters, it also has vocal opponents. The so-called Nebraska Family Alliance said that they are against the expansion of gambling as this is likely to hurt those of the state’s residents “who can least afford it.”
A spokesperson for Nebraska Governor Pete Ricketts revealed that he had not read the petitions yet but he opposed the legalization of casino gambling. Gov. Ricketts was a board member of the anti-gambling organization Gambling with the Good Life.
