New York Counties Have Extra Cash, Thanks to Casinos

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New York counties are in a better place with regards to funding this year, thanks to the relaxing of gambling regulations. Thanks to changes that allowed for new casinos to be built, various New York counties are finding that they have more tax money at their disposal.

New York Counties benefits from new casinos

New York Counties Get Revenue Boost

Many local governments in the state of New York have started planning their 2018 budgets. The good news is that many of them are discovering that they have some additional tax income that can be used. This new income can be used for everything from education to programs to help senior citizens.

One example of this is Tompkins County, where the local government will have an additional $1.36 million to play with. This money came from the new casinos that opened upstate, namely Tioga Downs and del Lago.

The groundwork for these new casinos was laid back at the end of 2013. Voters in New York state approved the authorization of new non-tribal casinos. The Tioga Downs casino was able to open in December 2016, while del Lago and Rivers Casino opened in 2017. These three new casinos are expected to generate $7 million in new school aid and property tax relief alone. They should also generate another $12.8 million in aid to local governments during their first year of operation.

Original Revenue Predictions Too Optimistic

Local county governments have also massively benefitted from the new casinos paying their licensing fees. Tioga Downs had to part with $20 million to get a license to offer slot games and table games at its race track. The other two casinos, which are stand-alone casino resorts, had to pay $50 million each for their licenses.

The only real issue seems to be that early revenue predictions were too optimistic. Tioga Downs expected to generate $32 million in tax revenue during its first year of operation. After ten months, it has only sent in $13.3 million in taxes. Both of the other casinos are also generating around 35% less tax income than originally anticipated.

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