Indiana’s bipartisan Legislative Interim Study Committee on Public Policy recently recommended that casinos be allowed to move from riverboats to land, providing they stay within the footprint of their current facilities. The move would save casino operators the expense of maintaining a vessel that rarely goes out on the water.
In Evansville, city officials said an added benefit would be if the Tropicana Evansville riverboat casino moved ashore, the World War II LST 325, now a museum, could move to the casino’s site. That would make the LST more visible and accessible so it could attract more visitors and make more money. Evansville Mayor Lloyd Winnecke said the legislature would demonstrate “great vision” by allowing land-based casinos. “I think it’s a direction the state definitely needs to go in and it definitely gives Tropicana a better platform from which to complete,” he said.
The study committee also unanimously recommended lawmakers consider ways to replace revenue for local governments if the general assembly decides to eliminate or modify casinos’ $3-per person admission tax. Evansville and Vanderburgh County each receive about $2 million annually from that tax.
Also, the committee recommended extending to fiscal 2018 the tax break lawmakers enacted in 2013 allowing casinos to deduct free-play coupons.
