Legislation for casino-style gambling at Kentucky’s eight licensed race tracks, which would allow gambling in all 120 counties of Kentucky, has been filed in the state Legislature that opened its 2005 session last Tuesday. Kentucky lawmakers have stated that it will be up to the voters to decide whether they would allow gambling in their respective counties.

According to Senator David Boswell, who filed a similar bill to the one already presented during the last two sessions, the state could collect as much as US$431 million annually from gambling at race tracks and casinos. Representative Tom Burch intends to submit a pair of bills. One bill would permit gambling machines only at licensed racetracks, while the other would let voters decide whether to allow the gambling machines in their counties.

According to reports, Representative Burch's proposals would mean a demographics-based licensing of 11,000 gambling machines for all counties, and indicate that although he has not discussed his proposals with racetrack officials, he believes that a plan allowing gambling machines state wide is the fairest way to have them in Kentucky - "It allows each community to participate if they want to and also gives some of the benefits that these machines would generate."

According to Burch's estimates, Kentucky could receive in excess of US$200 million annually if gambling machines are placed at the racetracks in the state, and as much as $800-million annually could be generated from the machines if voters decided to allow them in their counties. Although it may take a constitutional amendment to expand gambling in Kentucky, the legislators have indicated a marked willingness to search out additional revenues for the state from the expansion of the gaming industry.
(E-02.04.05)

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