The Rhode Island cities of Lincoln and Tiverton’s share of sports wagers at the casinos they host was doubled to $200,000 annually in the budget that state lawmakers adopted on June 24. The two casinos have operated sportsbooks since 2018.
The casinos are operated by Bally’s, formerly Twin River. House Speaker K. Joseph Shekarchi, whose district includes Tiverton, told fellow lawmakers, “Tiverton is going to do very well in this budget, very well, and so will Lincoln for that matter.” The money comes from federal Covid stimulus funds.
The Speaker added this information when Rep. John Edwards, who also represents Tiverton, expressed concerns about the city losing $600,000 of education money from the budget. Shekarchi said that municipalities are doing well from stimulus funds: “They are sitting on a pile of cash,” he said. “Let’s see how they spend it. Let’s see if they do good things with it.”
Because both cities did not receive their $3 minimum payments last year when the casinos were closed due to the pandemic, the budget includes language that would see them paid, even if their casinos are forced to close again.
