“It’s glittering like gold, but I predict it’ll be fool’s gold,” said state Rep. Ron Amstutz, R-Wooster, a vocal critic of state-sponsored gambling.
The new two-year budget counts on raising nearly $1 billion for school funding through video slots, or VLTs, at seven horse racetracks. But already, the United Council of Churches, United Methodist Church, and Ohio Roundtable are planning to block the slots through legal challenges and apply political pressure to get lawmakers to change their minds, said the Rev. John Edgar, chairman of the anti-gambling task force for the United Methodists in Ohio.
“We’re convinced it’s just not going to happen,” he said. “It’s a mess and it reflects very poorly on the General Assembly and the governor.”
Both Democratic Gov. Ted Strickland, who proposed the plan, and Republican Senate President Bill Harris, who agreed to it, were initial opponents to expanding gambling, particularly without a vote of the people. But their opposition melted as they ran out of options for balancing the state’s $50.5 billion, two-year operating budget without a tax increase.
State Sen. Bill Seitz, R-Cincinnati, was one of only five Republican senators to support the plan. Seitz said it’s about time Ohio stops sending gambling money to nearby states.
“There is still plenty of money to be had. I don’t have any doubt about that,” he said. “They’re paving the streets with gold in southeast Indiana, and I’ve been saying that for nine years.”
It’s unknown yet whether slot machines can survive the promised court challenges. But there’s also another question that may need answering: How much gambling is Ohio willing to support?
The Secretary of State is expected to rule next week whether a proposal to open the door to four casinos has enough valid voter signatures to make the November ballot. The issue, backed by the majority owner of the Cleveland Cavaliers Dan Gilbert and Penn National Gaming, calls for amending the state constitution to allow for casinos in downtown Cincinnati, Columbus, Cleveland and Toledo.
If voters approve the casino issue — and video slots become a reality — Ohio may have to trade in its reputation as a “nongambling state.” Under the proposed ballot issue, Ohio would get $200 million in upfront licensing fees and $651 million a year that would be split among cities, counties, school districts and other public entities.
Bob Tenenbaum, spokesman for the Ohio Jobs and Growth Plan, said the casinos would generate 13,000 construction jobs, 7,000 direct permanent jobs and as many as another 14,000 spin off positions. Each new casino would cost at least $250 million, he said.
Some believe, however, that the casinos would hurt the racetrack business, and thus limit the revenue projections outlined in the budget.
Tenenbaum said he doubts that will happen. “I think it’s a different audience,” he said. “There is a sufficient market to support both.”
Seitz isn’t so sure. The casino proposal is written so that Penn National and Gilbert will pay a 33 percent tax rate while the racetracks pay a 50 percent rate — an inherently unfair playing field that hurts the tracks.
“In the final analysis, significant gaming should be taxed at the same rate,” he said. “You can’t have one guy operating with a 33 percent effective tax burden and the other guy at 50 percent.”
Contact this reporter at (614) 224-1624 or lbischoff @DaytonDailyNews.com.
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