According to Bear Stearns, higher VIP play and increased tourism pushed Macao's December gambling revenues above the $1 billion mark for the month — a 38% increase from last December.
California may be too close to call for Super Tuesday but the polls are trending favorably for a quartet of initiatives that would expand the slot base by 17,000 machines for select tribal casinos. Field Poll results show Initiatives 94-97 ahead 47% to 34%. Anti-initiative forces would have win over virtually all of the undecided voters, an unlikely occurrence given that the initiatives have consistently picked up steam in the polls.
A favorable vote tomorrow renders the accidental federal approval of these compacts moot (the compacts went missing for such a long time that they automatically went into effect). Even so, it would be pleasantly surprising if this matter still didn't somehow wind up in the courts.
In other news, Shawnee District Court has given the thumbs-up to Kansas' casino-expansion law. However, the state Supreme Court has yet to weigh in on the matter.
