I’m a bit overdue on this but feel the need to comment.
Statement of Fort Wayne Mayor Tom Henry on the issue of gaming:
We are living in difficult, and for far too many, desperate economic times. With each new day, my concern for the health of our community and our people grows. I see businesses stretched to the limits. I see people losing jobs, homes, tuition for college, retirement savings – and with each of those challenges, some of our hopes and dreams for the future vanish as well.
We’re worried about the basics: staying employed, keeping warm, feeding our families, paying the mortgage, finding health care – all the things that add up to basic security for ourselves, our children and our grandchildren.
Stop right there. He said it, we’re living in tough economic times, so let’s bring a casino to town?
1). A 1996 Mississippi State University study found that poor Mississippians living in counties with casinos lost a far greater percentage of their income in the casinos than did wealthier gamblers. Gamblers earning less than $10,000 per year lost about 10 percent of their family income to casinos, while those earning more than $40,000 spent only about 1 percent of their earnings on casino gambling.
2). A study of 1,800 Minnesotans in state-run gambling treatment programs found that 52 percent had yearly incomes of $20,000 or less. The study also discovered that the amount of debt, as a proportion of income, was highest among the poorest gamblers seeking treatment.
3). University of North Florida researchers reported: “Gambling expenditures in Las Vegas indicate a regressive pattern for gambling taxes because the percentage of household income devoted to gambling falls consistently as income rises.” For instance, Las Vegas casino gamblers with household annual incomes of less than $10,000 lost 3.25 percent of their income to casino gambling. Those with annual incomes between $50,000 and $60,000, by comparison, lost only .8 percent of their income to the casinos
Today ABCNews reported this:
The Nevada Gaming Control Board reported last week that revenue at the state’s casinos fell by 22 percent in October, compared with the same month last year. It was the 10th straight monthly decline — and the biggest ever. The story was even worse on the Las Vegas Strip, where the October take was down by 26 percent. The steep downturn has sparked a movement to lower the legal gambling age to 18.
[...]
Thousands laid off as casinos near bankruptcy
For operators of casinos and other gambling concerns, the outlook is as grim as it’s ever been, with executives predicting that no new casino projects will be started for at least five years.
Henry continued…
On top of this, the City anticipates a sizable budget shortfall next year, worsened by the economic meltdown, but due in large part to changes made by state government.
We are living in uncertain, unsettled economic times. As your Mayor, I look around and ask: What can I do to strengthen our community? How can I help the citizens of Fort Wayne? How can I ensure a hometown that’s an attractive, vibrant place to live? How can I bolster revenue without adding to taxpayer burdens?
The evidence proves that those with lesser incomes will spend (throw away) more on gambling, so any economic gain will be perceived to be on the backs of the poor. I can already hear Reverend Latham howling at the moon.
Recently, several groups have come to us. They are exploring the potential for gaming in our community. Once again the City is doing what it should be doing.
Step one: We’re listening and talking to those with the ideas. We’ve made it clear that we’re open to meeting with anyone who wants to bring a viable proposal to the table.
Step two. We’re taking action. I’ve directed my staff to study the issue. As a community, we need to be informed and prepared. As your Mayor, I want to be in the best position possible to represent the community’s interests. It is a responsibility I take very seriously – and knowledge is the key. We all know you can’t negotiate well, shape plans or make informed decisions, without solid, objective information.
As our work unfolds, we may need specialized counsel and expert assistance. If we do, we will determine how best to secure that help. The Fort Wayne City Council will be our partner is this endeavor.
You may be wondering why all of this is happening now. The answer: The upcoming session of the Indiana General Assembly. The legislative calendar is driving the actions of various private business interests, and in turn our need to delve into this matter.
As Mayor, I am keenly aware that others look to me for guidance. That is why research and analysis are imperative. I could not take a position on an issue of this magnitude – for or against, or ask the people of Fort Wayne to consider it, without having completely examined it or knowing what its impact on our community might be.
We are living in painful economic times. It would be irresponsible for the City not to talk to individuals interested in gaming because of the potential revenue it could create to help us provide the level of services expected by our residents and necessary to keep us competitive.
It would be equally irresponsible for us not to be doing our homework. We are doing our homework. And we are doing it thoughtfully and thoroughly.
Casinos do not offer high paying wages. The typical dealer at a casino makes less than minimum wage, with the balance made from tokes (tips). In Buloxi, MS for example, dealers average an hourly wage of $4.50 to $5.00 per hour and can count on tips to range from an additional $6 – $9 per hour, but that was two years ago and casinos are hard pressed to find gamblers these days. Vegas dealers average quite a bit higher, but this isn’t Vegas we’re talking about, it’s Fort Wayne.
In addition, most casinos keep dealers hours at or below 30 hours in order to keep them from becoming full-time employees. This allows them to keep the employee from gaining access to healthcare benefits.
Think about the jobs associated with a casino. The bulk of them will be waitresses, busboys, cooks, dealers, parking attendants, etc.
Henry seeks to balance the city budget on the backs of the poorest and most vulnerable citizens, all the while basking in the virtue of fighting tax increases. Bringing a casino to Fort Wayne will only peddle false hope to confiscate cash from our poorest citizens to fatten shrinking city coffers.
AWB
Footnotes
1 William Rivenbark and Don Slabach, “Who Pays to Play? Voluntary Tax Incidence and Mississippi Gaming,” Mississippi State University, the John G. Stennis Institute of Government, July 1996, p. 33.
2. Pat Doyle, “Compulsive Gambling Hitting Poor Hardest, New State Study Says,” Minneapolis Star Tribune, July 25, 1997, p. 1B.
3. Mary O. Borg, Paul M. Mason and Stephen L. Shapiro, “The Incidence of Taxes on Casino Gambling: Exploiting the Tired and Poor,” American Journal of Economics and Sociology, July 1991, pp. 323-332.
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Tags: Fort Wayne Casino, Tom Henry
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Dan:
Your last paragraph says it ALL, buddy…believe me!
And casinos breed crime Like we don’t have plenty already here)…ask those in Vegas, or Atlantic City for example.
Less than THREE blocks from the boardwalk casinos in NJ are some of the worst slum areas on the east coast!
Been there…saw them.
B.G.
(and that would Rev. Bill McGill doing any “Howling”…lol)
And what makes it even funnier is the possible location – South Clinton by Headwaters Park. That area was created to manage 3 rivers flooding. Remember all of the businesses that used to be in that area and were bought out to prevent further damage from flooding. Now a gambling establishment is built and then a flood happens. What will the response be from the city? That would be the area of first response by the city. Forget about homeowners. Gotta protect those “high-income” jobs! Does anybody ever pay attention to history?
so lets see. fort wayne has lots of jobs(had)
factory- minimum wage now.
truck drivers- less than minimum wage
fast food- id last 5 minutes there. and you? minimum wage.
warehouse- lots of heavy lifting- minimum wage.
military industrial complex- sure- lets make bombs, etc to kill people- thats nice. requires perpetual wars, imperialism, colonialism, etc.
and when we fall back, and regroup- the bomb makers have no plan b to produce useful, peacefful consumer goods.
the war on drugs? lets provide lots of money to the drul lords in all our foreign policy trouble hot spots- so they can buy weapons/WMD’s etc to kill americans.
so we dont have a diversified economy-
AND I CHOPPED DOWN THE CHERRYMASTER TREE1 – putting illegal racketeers and crooked politicians out of business. and whats wrong with that?
including the illegal cherrymasters at tom henrys family saloons.
i have a whole list of things why fort wayne and indiana sucks, and will always be a hick backwater full of nutjobs of various ilks.
so go ahead- pay more utility fees- note- city utilities wants 17 million- exactly the estimated shortfall from tax base losses- due to failure to diversify our economy, and think outside the box.
and nobody will do any serious budget cuts, project delays, cancellations- thus spreading the misery to the other governmental welfare parasites.
and dont get me going on the “blue shirted nazis- who make it dangerous to go out at night, and responsibly drink a few social drinks, and drive carefully home on barely crowded streets at night.
and so on. sure- lets live like the taliban, under sharia laws. works for them, doesnt it? they are all happy campers, arent they?
so merry bleeping x-mas, you mother bleepers. and bleep fort wayne!