In New York, past efforts have failed to see the state move forward with what they offer via the gambling industry. Efforts have been made to see online poker come to pass without avail. Now, it seems the Gaming Commission is at least considering a few options and have ordered a study to be conducted. The scope of the study will consist of an analyzation of the entire gaming industry of New York, including the implications of social, fiscal and economic elements regarding gaming.
The Study
The Commission will soon be selecting the company to conduct the study, with four companies have submitted bids to complete the work. Senator Joseph Addabbo Jr. spoke out about the study stating to Online Poker Report that he hopes the study will give the state the blueprint they need for the entire gaming picture so they can use it like a road map to move forward and expand the industry.
Several options have been considered for the state including adding more casinos to the downstate sector as well as providing more gaming options such as online lottery sales.
Once the winning bidder is chosen, they will need to get to work providing a detailed workout up of the gaming market in New York State. The focus will be on several areas including information regarding the performance of existing commercial casinos as well as video lottery gaming terminals, the lottery and tribal facilities.
The study will also take a look at how the state will be affected by adding three new commercial casinos in the social manner, as well as fiscal and economic levels. A VLT facility will also be studied for Orange County as to how the venue would affect existing state revenues as well as other gaming facilities.
The company will also need to review how taxation rates applying to commercial casino games and video lottery games could change and what the impact would be on the state. The group is to also provide suggestions as to how each market segment can see growth as well as sustainability.
The market needs to be reviewed for an expansion involving sports betting to off-track betting facilities as well as VLTs. The Gaming Commission would also like to know how online sports betting, video poker and lottery would affect the region.
Bring in the Casinos
One goal of the study is to see additional casinos created in the state. In 2013, voters of New York approved as many as seven commercial casinos. The first four were constructed upstate and were to be given until 2023 to stabilize until the next three could be constructed downstate.
The hope is that the study will push up the date for the remaining three casinos to be created to help bolster revenues. The American Gaming Association has showed that gaming in New York is quite lucrative. Last year, the state had a $2.59 billion industry. The majority of that number came not from the commercial casinos but from two VLT venues located downstate.
The $1.45 billion earned by the two venues shows that gaming can be successful in the region. With the study’s help, the three casinos may get a starting point much earlier than 2023 which would help to expand gaming faster in the state and provide much-needed revenues.
For now, we wait and see who the Commission chooses to provide the study and what they are able to come up with after reviewing all the many points to be covered in the review.
