The following three casinos in the small eastern state of Delaware will be paying less tax after lawmakers provisionally approved legislation late last week that would lower the general duty on slot earnings with a complete percentage point to 42.5%.
Based on Friday reports from The News Journal newspaper and local television broadcaster WCAU, the measure sailed through the Delaware House of Representatives with a vote of 35 to four and is now set to be placed ahead of the likewise Democratic-controlled Delaware State Senate.
If subsequently passed by the upper legislative chamber and signed into law by Democratic Governor John Carney, the measure would reportedly lead to Dover Downs Hotel and Casino, Casino at Delaware Park and Harrington Raceway paying around $11 million less in tax this year. The burden would supposedly fall by about an extra $6 million in 2019 as the legislation also contains a 13.9% reduction to 15.5percent on the taxation for table games while still allowing places to invest in their possessions in order to avoid paying an yearly license renewal fee.
Delaware State Senator, Brian Bushweller, reportedly told The News Journal that the three local casinos employ almost 3,000 people and that the tax cut will help the places to remain afloat because they compete against rivals from the neighboring states of Maryland and Pennsylvania.
“They’ve got a fantastic future.
The News Journal reported that Delaware has raised the tax rate on slots seven times because legalizing the machines in the mid-1990s together with the rate eventually reaching 43.5percent in 2009 because the state endeavored to close a budget gap. However, this charge was almost double the initial 1994 rate and motivated the industry to start actively lobbying for tax relief.
“If you have a look at just what the business has generated for the state through the years, it’s close to $4 billion,” Denis McGlynn, Chief Executive Officer for Dover Downs Hotel and Casino, reportedly told the newspaper. “We are in a partnership with the state along with the horseracing industry and I think this legislation demonstrates lawmakers are grasping that we want all three partners to be healthy. Our financial situation last year shows that’s not true.
The News Journal reported that Dover Downs Hotel and Casino is the sole public casino in Delaware and recorded a reduction of over $1 million for 2018 later paying some $75 million to the state and the Delaware Standardbred Owners Association.
