The Indiana General Assembly — which adjourned April 30 — knew that its counterpart in Illinois was working on a package that likely would result in the expansion of casino gambling across the state line.
That came to fruition last week. And the proposed expansion is massive.
So big, that some gaming analysts contend it could be quite harmful for the casino industry in Northwest Indiana.
State Rep. Charlie Brown, D-Gary, one of the authors of the Indiana casino gambling law in 1993, said last week: “If this stays as is, it’s going to be devastating to Northwest Indiana. I maintain it is still going to do harm to the existing boats out there, so it’s going to be interesting over the next few days what the governor’s decision is.”
Because of the Illinois proposal, Ameristar Casino in East Chicago is waiting to see what happens before committing $35 million to the replacement of the Cline Avenue bridge.
Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn has expressed concern about the bill, but hasn’t said whether he will veto, sign or recommend changes. The bill would permit five new casinos — one each in Chicago’s south suburbs, downtown Chicago, Lake County, Ill., Rockford and Danville. It also would allow slot machines at Illinois race tracks and O’Hare and Midway airports.
The new casinos would be land-based, and Illinois’ 10 existing casino boats also would be allowed to convert to land-based.
The number of gaming positions in Illinois would expand from 12,000 to 39,000.
Because the Indiana casinos rely heavily on Illinois residents, the new casino package would have an effect.
Hammond’s Horseshoe Casino has said it gets 90 percent of its customers from Illinois. Ameristar in East Chicago and the two Majestic Star Casinos in Gary draw at least 70 percent of their customers from Illinois.
If Quinn agrees with the total package — or at least a good part of it — Indiana will have to react to maintain its current level of tax receipts.
We would encourage Indiana to respond with a summer legislative study committee to draw up plans for when the Legislature reconvenes in January. Waiting simply will exacerbate the problem.