{"id":27486,"date":"2020-07-08T09:41:43","date_gmt":"2020-07-08T17:41:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lasvegasadvisor.com\/stiffs-and-georges\/?p=27486"},"modified":"2020-07-08T09:41:46","modified_gmt":"2020-07-08T17:41:46","slug":"chicago-compromise-effected","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lasvegasadvisor.com\/stiffs-and-georges\/chicago-compromise-effected\/","title":{"rendered":"Chicago compromise effected"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Windy City Mayor Lori Lightfoot<\/strong> (D) may have won a battle but is still losing the war. The Illinois<\/strong> Lege has passed\u2014and Gov. J.B. Pritzker<\/strong> (D) has signed\u2014a ‘relaxation of Chicago<\/strong>‘s 72% casino tax, a burden so onerous it would ensure that any gambling house built would lose money. However, the improvement in the new bill is difficult to discern. Basically, the new law would negatively incentivize casino development by making it more profitable for developers to keep a casino (and its grosses) small. Revenue from slots would hit 75% if revenues exceeded $1 billion, with a baseline of 22.5%. The maximum installed slot base would 4,000 machines. Table game taxes would start at 15% and escalate to 35% if revenues hit $375 million.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

It’s unclear from the initial coverage<\/a> if the state has clung to its punitive demands for $30,000\/gaming position or $15 million for the license. Given the avarice that tends to prevail in Illinois politics, we’ll believe they’re gone when we see confirmation. Even without them, the high taxes constitute a formidable deterrent to casino development in Chicago, as does the timing of the legislation. This is not a time when people are investing big in casinos. Those potential developers who are the most flush (like Las Vegas Sands<\/strong>) wouldn’t be interested and while some of the likelier candidates are in penury at the moment. We nominate Hard Rock International<\/strong> as the one brand that could really make this work\u2014and that’s a big compliment given the heavy lift involved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"“Neither legal nor helpful.\u201d That’s how Oklahoma Indian Gaming Association<\/strong> Chairman Matthew Morgan<\/strong> described the newly signed compacts with the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians<\/strong> and Kialegee Tribal Town<\/strong>. The compacts, which, in their first draft, unilaterally granted sports betting to both tribes, have become a flashpoint of controversy. On one side is Gov. Kevin Stitt<\/strong> (R), who says his word is law. On the other are state legislative leaders and Attorney General Mike Hunter<\/strong> (pictured<\/em>), who say Stitt has overstepped his remit. Pursuant to that, a state court challenge has been filed, although both compacts got the green light both from federal courts and the Interior Department<\/strong>. “For the past year, Gov. Stitt\u2019s actions have caused unnecessary strife, costly litigation and have wasted the state\u2019s resources,” lamented Morgan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The contested sports betting has been replaced by “most favored nation” covenants which commit Oklahoma<\/strong> to amending the compacts to include the same wagering offerings granted to other tribes. This potentially opens the door to house-banked card and table games as well, another sticking point. Yet another is the authorization of off-reservation casinos near federal highways, in return for which the affected tribes are paying a complex set of taxes that boil down to 15% on slots and 18% on table games once the ‘exclusivity fees’ mature. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dialing back his previously inflammatory rhetoric, Stitt painted the compacts as an economic-opportunity measure. \u201cBy negotiating with each individual Oklahoma tribe, the state is seeking to level the playing field for all tribes and working to ensure that no one is held back by its size or resources from competing and pursuing economic growth for its citizens,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gaming tribes in California<\/strong> caught a break from their courts when they were given 90 extra days<\/a> to collect signatures for a sports-betting petition targeted for the 2022 election. The petition drive had been going great guns when Covid-19<\/strong> intervened, leaving the constituent tribes just short of the finish line. They need 1,096,853 signatures and have 971,373. They’re playing for big stakes\u2014an estimated $1.5 billion in revenue and $200 million in taxes for the state. Should the initiative pass, card rooms and horse tracks would be on the outside looking in. A rival proposal from state Sen. Bill Dodd<\/strong> (D) looks to die a quiet death in the Lege.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The fate of the Palms Casino<\/strong> remains uncertain as Station Casinos<\/strong> is mum on its plans for the mothballed, high-end resort. However, the one-year closing of Texas Station<\/strong>, Fiesta Rancho<\/strong> and Fiesta Henderson<\/strong> could be longer still<\/a>. Station informed North Las Vegas<\/strong> and Henderson<\/strong> that the trio will “remain closed until further notice and there is no known re-opening date<\/em> at this time” (emphasis added). Wall Street<\/strong> has bruited about Station engaging in asset sales, and the Fiestas and Texas Station look increasingly like low-hanging fruit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"Jottings<\/em><\/strong>: “Customer feedback” is being cited as the reason for a new, temporary smoking ban<\/a> at Parx Casino<\/strong>. Whatever the cause, attaboy … Wanna catch Covid-19? Try a Las Vegas<\/strong> resort pool<\/a>. Sheldon Adelson<\/strong>‘s Las Vegas Review-Journal<\/em> reports they “are packed with little fear of a pandemic” … Not many things may be open in Michigan<\/strong> but applications for Internet casinos and sports books are among them<\/a>. Meanwhile, the Pokagon Band of Potowatomi<\/strong> have reached overseas and cut a deal with Kambi Group<\/strong>. That won’t make Bill Miller<\/strong> happy … Visit the Web site of Major League Soccer<\/strong> and you’ll find something new<\/a>: game odds courtesy of Bet MGM<\/strong>. Players of D.C. United<\/strong> already wear the logo of Caesars Sports<\/strong> on their jerseys. The Bet MGM alliance is ruffling some feathers here but wouldn’t raise an eyebrow in Europe<\/strong>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Windy City Mayor Lori Lightfoot (D) may have won a battle but is still losing the war. The Illinois Lege has passed\u2014and Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) has signed\u2014a ‘relaxation of Chicago‘s 72% casino tax, a burden so onerous it would … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[88,244,34,117,172,283,58,37,245,259,78,115,33,243,57,31,9,20],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lasvegasadvisor.com\/stiffs-and-georges\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27486"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lasvegasadvisor.com\/stiffs-and-georges\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lasvegasadvisor.com\/stiffs-and-georges\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lasvegasadvisor.com\/stiffs-and-georges\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lasvegasadvisor.com\/stiffs-and-georges\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27486"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.lasvegasadvisor.com\/stiffs-and-georges\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27486\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":27489,"href":"https:\/\/www.lasvegasadvisor.com\/stiffs-and-georges\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27486\/revisions\/27489"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lasvegasadvisor.com\/stiffs-and-georges\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27486"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lasvegasadvisor.com\/stiffs-and-georges\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27486"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lasvegasadvisor.com\/stiffs-and-georges\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27486"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}