Local Governments Getting Less Casino Tax Revenue

The growth of racinos in Ohio has led to a decline in casino tax revenue for local governments. Casino taxes are split seven ways, with most going to counties and host cities. But as Ohio's racino industry expands to seven outlets this year, those tax revenues go only to education. The switch has made some local governments wary of allocating uncertain casino tax money for mandated expenses like courts and jails. Instead, they use the money for extra items like one-time projects. The overall casino tax pot is shrinking. Ohio is distributing 68 million dollars, the local cut of casino taxes collected from October through December. That was 2.2 percent less than the last quarterly disbursement. On the racino side, the October through December take was 28.1 million dollars, up 25 percent.