Operators of the three struggling racinos in Delaware hoping for a quick passage to Senate Bill 144 to get tax relief were disappointed last week when the state Senate Finance Committee decided to shelve a bill that would have returned $20 million annually to the racinos through tax cuts and breaks on annual fees.
Committee members agreed to set the bill aside at the request of Governor John Carney, who asked that the lawmakers wait until after revenue reports are in to the state on franchise and personal income taxes.
The bill would have changed the state slot revenue tax from 43 percent to a sliding scale ranging from 32 percent to 43.5 percent, slash the revenue tax on table games from 30 percent to 15 percent, and eliminate the annual $3 million table-game licensing fee.
The three racinos have been begging the state for tax relief for years, as they have been struggling against new competition in Maryland and Pennsylvania. So far, the legislature has shot the request down every year since the formation of a blue-ribbon panel of state and industry officials first proposed the tax breaks four years ago.
According to a report at Calvinayre.com, state Finance Secretary Rick Geisenberger assured the lawmakers that the Carney administration is open to changing the tax structure, but wants to wait until its exact cost to the state is known.
“It’s premature before we have a better sense of our March collections from corporate franchise tax and our April collections from personal income tax to be resolving this issue,” Geisenberger said, according to the news outlet. “But once we have that better picture, it would be more timely.”
