Kentucky Racing Industry Begins Casino Campaign With Estimates

The Kentucky racing industry has been hanging on by a thread financially the past couple of years, and the industry, along with support from Governor Steve Beshear, has vowed to make a push this year to bring casino gambling to their racing facilities. That push began this week with the release of a study on what gambling expansion would mean for the state financially.

The study, which was commissioned by the racing industry, was completed by Spectrum Gaming Group. The study estimates that $1.1 billion annually would be made by the state government, the tracks, and casino operators. That estimate is based on the idea that there are seven casinos open at state tracks, and one stand alone casino in the southern part of the state.

Opponents of expanded gambling have already started to attack the findings of the study. The opponents point to the idea that the study does not take into consideration the possible negative windfall for already existing businesses. The existing business owners are concerned that adding casinos will take away from their business. Proponents of expanded gambling assert that the casinos will help bring more people to existing businesses.

Governor Beshear has been back and forth on the gambling issue in recent years. Several years ago, Beshear attempted to seize the domain names of 141 online gambling sites. Beshear, however, last year started to lobby heavily for casinos at state race tracks. The national racing industry has suffered substantially since the 2008 economic recession, and many states have turned to casino gambling to help their racing industries survive.

In Kentucky, Churchill Downs is home to the Kentucky Derby, one of the most famous annual horse races in the world. The Churchill group could benefit greatly from the addition of slots and other casino games. The study by the Spectrum Group indicates that horse owners and breeders would gain $164.6 million annually from casino expansion. The state would have an extra $464 in projected gaming taxes, and the casino developers that run the eight casinos would profit $550 million.

January 17, 2012
Posted By Terry Goodwin
Staff Editor, CasinoGamblingWeb.com
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