NY Tax Revenue from Casinos Dwindling Amid Covid-19

By Benyamin Davidsons

New York’s casinos have also been dealt a rough hand, during the ongoing pandemic.  The big loser in this case is the state coffers, which are out $600 million in revenues from the casinos in the current fiscal year, state Gaming Commission reports, as per the NY Post.

When New York was declared the epicenter of the Coronavirus, the governor ordered a shutdown of all nonessential business.  The Casinos were completely shut for five months from April to August, producing zero revenues for government coffers.  Even after the casinos opened, fewer gamblers came in, leaving revenues lower than typical monthly revenues.

The lost revenue in taxes had been earmarked for education, and state schools.  In the fiscal year dated April 2019 till the end of March 2020, the four horse track casinos created $906.3 million for education, as per the Gaming Commission.  As reported by the NY Post, this year, thus yet, the track casino revenues earmarked for education is only $222 million, with just three months left in the fiscal year. If things continue as they are, the casinos are slated to bring in another $180 million in the last three months, reaching a total of $400 million for the fiscal year.  That would be a decline of $500 million, in comparison to the previous year.

For example, the Resorts World Casino at Aqueduct race track in Queens generated only $58.8 million so far this year.  If the next few months go well, it can bring that figure up to $100 million, which is still painfully lower than the $250.3 million in revenue that it directed toward education last year.  Similarly, the Empire City casino at Yonkers Raceway, brought in $290.5 million for education last year, but this year it has generated just $60.9 million so far.  The four upstate commercial casinos, which include Resort World’s Catskills, Rivers, Del Lago and Tioga casinos, are also generating drastically lower revenues this year, in comparison to last year.

Some lawmakers are pushing to legalize mobile sports betting in the state, maintaining that the app-based wagering would remain active even if in-person visits to casinos suffer again.  “Under my proposal all casinos benefit through mobile sports betting by placing bets off site,” said Gary Pretlow (D-Mt. Vernon ), chairman of the Assembly Racing and Wagering Committee.  Currently, New Yorkers can only wager on sports by in-person betting at one of the four upstate casinos.