[toc]It’s getting crowded at the top.
Projections for the 2016-17 fiscal year say the revenue New York pulls in from its gambling taxes will surpass those of Nevada, but will be in second behind tax-happy Pennsylvania.
“New York is on track to collect more casino tax revenue than Nevada this year,” Las Vegas Review-Journal reporter Richard N. Velotta wrote. “If that happens, Nevada … will become the No. 3 state in the union for collecting tax revenue from the casinos within its borders.”
The numbers behind the ascent of NY gambling
As New York gambling insiders know, the state’s revenue-per-casino figures are significantly higher than what exists in Las Vegas.
The state has nine casinos, all of which are racinos and utilize video gaming terminals.
According to the Review-Journal, the state’s two biggest revenue-earners are Resorts World Casino in Queens and Yonkers’ Empire City Casino. Meanwhile, Nevada is home to 271 casinos.
With such a huge disparity between total properties in each state, it might be surprising that Nevada could place second to any state.
However, the trick is each state’s casino tax rates. In Nevada, tax rates are capped at 8.75 percent: up to 6.75 percent to the state and up to one percent to county and municipal governments.
New York, on the other hand, utilizes tax rates between 31 and 41 percent.
So, while New York has just a fraction of the casinos of Nevada, the state’s tax rates bring in more tax revenue. The New York State Gaming Commission’s six-month numbers show the state’s racinos are on track to take in more than $2 billion in wins this year.
The state’s nine casinos have already logged more than $25 million in wins over the same April-to-September stretch in 2016.
Numbers will probably continue to rise with new casinos being built
New York’s current tally of nine casinos (albeit racinos) will bump up to 13 when construction is completed on four “commercial casinos.” These properties are designated as destination gaming resorts.
There are four Las Vegas-style casinos under construction right now in New York:
- Del Lago Resort & Casino
- Rivers Casino & Resort
- Montreign Resort Casino
- Tioga Downs
Investments in these projects have hit $1.5 billion, with completion dates projected to be:
- Del Lago: Feb. 2017
- Rivers: Unknown, 50 percent completed as of Oct. 2016
- Montreign: Unknown
- Tioga Downs: Unknown, but 90 percent completed as of Oct. 2016
According to experts, the casinos will bring more than 4,700 jobs to the state and will, in theory, take a cut of the estimated one million gamblers who head to Atlantic City to roll the dice.
