Casinos seeking help in pandemic recovery

The industry wants tax and regulatory relief from the government as it operates under heavy restrictions.

ATLANTICCITY,N.J.» The U.S. casino industry is seeking tax and regulatory relief from the government as it tries to recover from the coronavirus outbreak, which cost states more than $2 billion in lost tax revenue while casinos were shut down for four months this year.

While 90% of casinos have reopened, they are operating at restricted levels to try to slow the spread of the virus, and additional financial aid is needed for casinos and their workers, according to the head of the gambling industry’s national trade group.

In his State of the Casinos speech Tuesday at the G2E 2020 conference, held online this year because of the pandemic, American Gaming Association President Bill Miller said the industry is coming back but needs a hand.

“Gaming has never experienced a disruption like COVID-19,” he said. “Over two weeks in March, every casino in America was closed by government-mandated shutdowns, impacting each of the 1.8 million jobs we support.

“Gaming workers, their families, and the small businesses that depend on us have all been hit hard,” Miller said. “And our states and communities are feeling it, too. In addition to COVID’s impact on businesses, jobs, and the well-being of our families, friends and colleagues, state budgets have been decimated by the pandemic.”

Detroit lost $600,000 in gambling tax revenue for every day its casinos were shut, he said. The pandemic wiped out $209 million in gaming tax revenue in Maryland and $323 million in Pennsylvania, he added.

The U.S. commercial casino industry took in $43.6 billion in 2019, a figure that is certain to decline this year due to the virus-related closures, the remaining restrictions on occupancy, and the hesitancy of some customers to return to casinos and hotels.

Miller said the casino industry succeeded in gaining access to pandemic relief funds as part of a massive package Congress approved this year — and will insist on inclusion in any future aid package. He did not say how much the industry has received thus far, and the associ