New York
Won't Share in Slot Revenues
As reported by the Buffalo News:
"The state is in no rush to be more generous
with Buffalo and Erie County when sharing future
slot machine revenues once the Seneca Nation
of Indians builds a downtown casino.
"Several
city and county officials see a casino as a
source of new and easy money. They believe the
state should take less of its expected slot
machine take and give more to the local governments.
"The
city and county shouldn't start counting the
cash quite yet.
"…At
issue is a clause already fought over in 2001
when Pataki and state lawmakers agreed to legislation
permitting the Senecas to open three casinos
in Western New York. It calls on the Senecas
to pay the state, after a phase-in period, 25
percent of annual slot machine revenues..
"The
2001 law also requires the state to give local
'host communities' 25 percent of the revenues
Albany takes in from the Senecas, meaning local
governments, on a sliding scale over time, would
be entitled to at least 6.25 percent of the
overall slot machine revenues…"
|
