Gambling News by Gambling Headquarters

Why am I not surprised that on Wednesday, the Austin American-Statesman, Dallas Morning News and Fort Worth Star-Telegram all reported that a proposal to broadly expand gambling in Texas is in the works in Austin? Hey, gambling-expansion proposals have emerged every two years in Texas since the early 1990s, just before each Legislature convened. What is different about this proposal? This plan would authorize casinos on the state's three Indian reservations - presumably, Class 3 casinos where players play against the house and not each other - and it would put video lottery terminals in the state's ailing horse and dog tracks. The plan would also authorize 12 "resort-style casinos," two each in Houston and Dallas, one each in Bexar, Tarrant and Travis Counties, one in Galveston and another in South Padre Island. Three more would be in places chosen by the Texas Gaming Commission, the über-gaming agency created under the proposal. Unlike earlier proposals, this plan teams up Indian reservations, horse- and dog-track interests and full-blown casino developers, interests that have been competitors in the past - always unsuccessful ones. According to proponents, the whole package will generate $1.6 billion annually for the state, money they envision spending on college tuitions, which have been skyrocketing since they were deregulated, and children's health insurance in a state that leads the nation in uninsured kids. Anyone familiar with the Texas budget will tell you that $1.6 billion per year is not chump change. And arguments already being advanced by gambling proponents are familiar ones that aren't really in dispute. Texas provides Nevada more gamblers than any other state except California, its neighbor, and there are more direct flights from Texas to Las Vegas than to any other destination. The Lone Star State is also surrounded by states with legal gambling. Go to any of these state-line gaming emporiums and you are likely to find Texas plates on well more than half the cars in the parking lots. Nor is it difficult to find places to risk money in Texas. Eight-liner emporiums are everywhere and pro-sports betting is ubiquitous in virtually every larger workplace and many watering holes. And yes, there's no shortage of gaming still available online. But what are the chances of this proposal moving forward? In a phrase, it won't be a slam-dunk. Winning two-thirds margins in both House and Senate to put a constitutional amendment on the ballot won't be easy for lawmakers who plan to return to the local church to talk about their service to the community. Then, winning voter approval won't be simple or easy. Pari-mutuel betting finally made it on its eighth try on the ballot. And however overstated, there will be the talk about the criminal element casinos bring. And far more reality based, there are also very real connections that will be made between widely accessible gaming and obsessive-compulsive disorders and low-grade property crimes. Hardest to get around, however, will be that none of Texas' previous gambling expansions - bingo, pari-mutuel race tracks and the Texas Lottery - have delivered the revenue promised.