Las Vegas Style Casino Gambling Still Far Off In Florida

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Plenty of hype has surrounded a visit by Las Vegas Sands officials to Tallahassee this week. That does not mean, however, that major casino resorts are in the near future for the Sunshine State.

Sands gave their pitch to lawmakers on Thursday. They are proposing four casino resorts in Tampa and Fort Lauderdale, and there plan could bring billions of dollars to the state. That amount of money, however, may not be enough to sway lawmakers to change the current laws that do not allow casino resorts.

"I think the time is coming for Florida to step back, catch its breath, and figure out in what direction it's going to go, said Representative Bob Galvano, "We cannot continue to function as a piecemeal state, where we do expansion here, a tweak here. We have to have that decision, and this is part and parcel of those discussions."

Galvano has been one of the lead negotiators in the House when it comes to a Seminole Indian gambling compact. After several failed attempts to reach an agreement, both the Seminoles and lawmakers have made concessions in their latest talks.

The Seminoles want exclusivity for table games, and the state is not willing to grant that exclusivity. The latest reports have the two parties compromising and giving the Seminoles a four year window of exclusivity, at which time, the state can re-examine their position.

Licensing fees for casino resorts was another topic discussed on Thursday. Amy Baker of the Office of Economic and Demographic Research claims the state could receive $1.5 billion, just in licensing fees. That is in addition to the millions of dollars in annual tax revenue that would be generated once the resorts are built.

Time is running short for any type of major casino resort legislation to pass this legislative session. Instead, lawmakers will continue to move along with their Seminole compact negotiations.

While Sands' appearance in Tallahassee raised some eyebrows, the future of casino gambling in the state remains as cloudy today as it was before the week began. If nothing else, the Sands proposal paved the way for further discussions in the future.

March 12, 2010
Posted By Terry Goodwin
Staff Editor, CasinoGamblingWeb.com
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