The owners of Maryland’s five casinos are asking state casino regulators to lower the minimum return-to-player for slots from its current 87 percent, citing lower minimums in New Jersey (83 percent) and Pennsylvania (85 percent). The request comes after revenue numbers showed Maryland casinos have been returning a larger portion of slot revenues to players than surrounding states.
According to public documents obtained by the Baltimore Sun, the request for lower payback requirements, included among a group of recommendations recently sent by the casinos to the Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Agency, seeks to lower the minimum payback percentage to 85 percent, and eliminate the current requirement that overall average return to player be maintained between 90 percent and 95 percent.
“The patrons would end up receiving less,” said Maryland Assistant Director for Gaming in an interview with the Sun. “The flip side is that hold would increase. So there is a potential revenue upside to the state on this.”
The move would increase the state’s portion of slot revenues—at 67 percent, already among the highest percentages in the nation—by increasing the rate of hold instead of the size of the state’s cut.
“Certainly, there’s an opportunity for us to bring in additional revenues for us and the state,” Hollywood Casino GM Matthew Heiskell told the Sun—while adding that casinos in general will not increase holds enough to make it a competitive disadvantage in relation to surrounding states.
“It’s really about flexibility and how we can change and create unique and distinct gaming opportunities at our casino,” agreed Robert Norton, president and general manager of Maryland Live!, the state’s largest casino.“The fear that casinos would take that 85 percent—take every percentage point of it —is really nonsensical.”
Any changes to the minimum payback percentage and the average-payout provision of the state law would have to wait for the fall session of the Maryland General Assembly, via a bill submitted to the Joint Committee on Administrative, Executive and Legislative Review., and the gaming oversight committees of each chamber.
