One less brick in the wall

cards-casinoInternet gambling in New Jersey is still wet behind the ears but state Sen. Raymond Lesniak wants to move it to the grown-ups’ table. Specifically, he wants wide-area Internet poker play. Domestic (read: Nevada and New Jersey) and international ones could have a piece of the action, which the Garden State will tax at 17.5%. Any “rakes” on operators from other governments would be recompensed with a New Jersey tax credit. Gov. Chris Christie (R) is thought to favor the idea — which would require negotiating many a compact — in principle, though he’s vetoed previous versions, citing technicalities. This would also be a test case of the Obama administration’s new interpretation of the Federal Wire Act.

Supporters of legal gambling in Georgia are being advised to “hold their breath until next year,” according to state Rep. Harry Geisinger (R). State officeholders like Gov. Nathan Deal are up for reelection this year, making it a less-than-propitious time to raise as controversial a topic as casinos. Deal or one of his opponents could use parimutuel wagering as the Trojan horse whereby wagering is used to prop up education funding.

EeyoreIt’s gloom-and-doom time in Ohio, where there’s already talk of casino gambling having peaked along with tax collections, thanks to two quarters of declines. Not all officials are as down in the dumps as Youngstown Finance Director David Bozanich, but Ohio does look like a case of too much, too soon. Gov. John Kasich (R) will have to wear this dismay and disappointment, having insisted on racinos plus casinos, not the four casinos authorized by Buckeye State voters.

Ohio University academic Alan Silver predicts “Ohio will be a strong market. We’ve had a slow recovery economically nationwide, the holiday season is kind of tough, and it’s been a horrible winter. It takes time for the industry to grow. Overall, it’s going to be a solid industry for years to come.” And, thanks to a quirk of timing, distributions to schools were actually higher in the second half of 2013, putting a silver lining behind Ohio’s dark cloud.

Surprising fact: “The company already has about 2,500 iPads attached to tables throughout Concourse G at the main [Minneapolis] terminal. Travelers use those devices to order food and beverages, check flight times and browse the Internet, but Hogan said they can be easily adapted to sell Powerball and Mega Millions tickets along with electronic versions of scratch-off games.” Las Vegas, look to thy laurels!

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