Virginia Authorities Disagree on Casino Legislation

Virginia has been looking to get the green light for a gambling extension, but the idea has not been ed by the local community. An expansion-related bill is experiencing regular hurdles in front of committees and hearings in the House and Senate when someone tries to propose any modification to the industry. Only during the last hearing, did the House look for new language on the tax structure of a proposed gambling bill, which was instantly dropped by the Senate. Giving the fact that two chambers are unable to reach a common solution, both sides should sit down and find a unified agreement…

What Was Proposed?

Right after the House proposed Senate Bill 36 version, the idea came across an immediate no response in the Senate – all 40 chamber were against the idea. For that reason, the conference committee will soon be launched to resolve the problem. It is yet to be seen when the first meeting will occur…

But what was the actual reason for the failure of the casino proposal? If we look at the background of the problem, it seems to be the share of casino profits. According to the Senate wishes, casino operators should give 27% on the first $150 million adjusted gross revenue (AGR) per year as well as 31% from $150 million to $300 million. It would lead to an operator obligation of up to 40%. However, the House of Delegates is looking for a completely different strategy and has just approved their version this past Friday. Its idea is to classify casinos following their investment and to impose the taxes accordingly.

House Idea

The Virginia House is of the following opinion – if a casino holds an investment from $250 million to $350 million, the tax would be 15% on the starting $150 million in adjusted gross revenue. Everything from $150 million to $300 million would be taxed with 20%, and profits above $300 million would be compensated with a 28% rate. Further on, casinos with investment above $350 million would have to pay 15% tax on the first $200 million in AGR, 20% on the following $200 million and 28% on revenues above $400 million.

As a reminder, Virginia lawmakers authorized a gambling expansion in the state last year, but they only completed a portion of the legislative process. For this reason, a law must be approved in the following legislative session which would allow political leaders to create a strict framework for the industry.

The Virginia General Assembly has been in sessions until March 7 and it couldn’t resolve much of the problems. Even if the approval has been received, local referendums should be organized and citizens of the Bristol, Danville, Norfolk, Portsmouth, and Richmond should give their opinion. However, it would hardly be completed until the fall…

Source: 
„Virginia lawmakers agree to disagree on casino bill”, Erik Gibbs, calvinayre.com, February 27, 2020.