Connecticut State Senator Tony Hwang announced last week that he is latest member of the Coalition Against Casino Expansion in Connecticut, a coalition that includes many state religious leaders united in opposing a third Indian casino in the state.
The proposal, by the Mohegan and Pequot tribes, operators of the state’s two casinos, would legalize an off-reservation casino that would be run by a consortium of the erstwhile gaming rivals.
The coalition quotes a national economist who claims that long-term benefits of a casino are outweighed by the economic and social costs. The opponents argue that gaming amounts to a regressive tax on the poor. In the nearly saturated casino market of New England, they are skeptical that another casino will meet its revenue and jobs goals.
They also claim that casinos spread problem gambling, which in turn causes debt, bankruptcies and destroys families and households. These issues in turn help fuel crime, they say.
Property values plunge in areas where casinos flourish, they say, and fewer people take part in civic activities.
The group also quotes the state’s attorney general who last year warned that an off-reservation casino could threaten the state tribal gaming compact and that the tribes would then not have to pay the state 25 percent of slots profits.
