Author: Casino Connection Staff

U.S. commercial gaming revenue topped $11 billion in Q1 2021, matching Q3 2019 as the industry’s highest-grossing quarter ever, according to the American Gaming Association’s Commercial Gaming Revenue Tracker.

The revenue total marks a 4.1 percent increase over the industry’s pre-pandemic performance in Q1 2019 and is a 17.7 percent increase over Q1 2020, when the entire gaming industry shut down in March due to COVID-19.

Commercial gaming’s strong Q1 revenue numbers signify an accelerating recovery for the industry, with Q1 2021 revenue up 21.1 percent over Q4 2020. Gains in gaming revenue were largely driven by the industry’s performance in March, the highest-grossing revenue month in history for U.S. commercial gaming.

More than half of states with commercial casinos saw quarterly gaming revenue increases over Q1 2019, with several states reporting record quarters.

“Today’s report shows gaming’s comeback is ahead of schedule,” said AGA President and CEO Bill Miller. “Throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, our industry has faced numerous challenges head-on while still reopening responsibly and providing a safe, exciting environment for customers.”

Despite significant COVID-mandated restrictions on casino capacity and amenities across the country, traditional brick-and-mortar casino games generated 90 percent of their Q1 2019 revenue, with March 2021 revenue for slots and table games coming within 1 percent of March 2019 totals.

Sports betting revenue for Q1 2021 saw a quarterly U.S. record of $961 million, up 270 percent over Q1 2020 and surpassing 2019’s full-year total of $909 million. Boosted by the January launch of online casinos in Michigan, iGaming generated $784 million nationwide in Q1 2021, more than tripling U.S. iGaming revenue from Q1 2020.

“The gaming industry is generating these impressive results with one hand tied behind our back as capacity and amenity restrictions remain across the country,” said Miller. “This is a testament to gaming’s hard work to help ensure our team members’ safety and well-being, which enabled us to reopen safely. We applied those same standards to our customers, whose clear pent-up demand was met by our responsible industry.”

The new $300 million Hard Rock Northern Indiana Casino recently debuted with great fanfare in Gary. The grand opening, hosted by former Gary residents Marlon and Tito Jackson of the original Jackson Five, featured Hard Rock International’s traditional guitar-smashing event. Also on hand were music greats and former Gary natives Deniece Williams, Kym Mazelle and Crystal Taliefero; executives from the Seminole Tribe of Florida, Hard Rock Casino Northern Indiana, Hard Rock International, owners Spectacle Entertainment and the Indiana Gaming Commission; other musicians; and local political leaders.

“Get ready for the good times, Gary,” said Marlon Jackson.

The Jackson brothers said they’re proud of being Gary natives and are happy about the investment in the city by the Seminole Tribe of Florida, Hard Rock International’s parent company.

“We’re ready to moonwalk back to success,” said Tito Jackson.

Dozens of pieces of memorabilia from the Jacksons are prominently displayed featured throughout the facility, including the brothers’ stage outfits and Michael’s famous white sequined glove.

State Senator Eddie Melton noted, “Gary had some difficult days in the past. But with God there’s nothing we can’t accomplish and with a unified vision, there’s nothing and no one that can stand in our way.”

The new 200,000 square foot entertainment complex offers 1,600 slot games, 80 gaming tables, restaurants, a theater and live performance venue.

Seminole Tribe Chairman Marcellus W. Osceola Jr. said, “The opportunity to come back and revitalize the area and then to partner with the Jackson family, is a plus.” He pointed out the new casino created 700 jobs, with more construction and full-time jobs expected as the second phase of development gets underway. He added, “It’s not just what’s inside the casino that’s important to us. It’s what’s outside, the community, too.” On that note, Hard Rock International Chief Operating Officer Jon Lucas said, “We will continue to cultivate this facility to help to build local partnerships.”

Meanwhile, Marion County Judge John Chavis recently heard oral arguments about whether to halt an Indiana Gaming Commission rule requiring shareholders of Spectacle Entertainment to be more transparent about their finances and business connections.

The new rules, which took effect March 24, are being challenged by Spectacle shareholders, including several prominent Indiana Republican donors and lobbyists, who claim they should not be required to provide the IGC detailed financial and background information since they are not involved in day-to-day operations at the new Gary casino.

They also object to the requirement that they sell their shares back to Spectacle Entertainment if they remain unwilling to provide the information, or if the commission finds them unsuitable after investigating the information submitted. The shareholders allege they’re being forced to sell their shares at “fire sale” prices just as the value of the company is poised to increase dramatically following the recent opening of the Hard Rock Northern Indiana Casino.

The IGC argued it is obligated under Indiana law to protect the credibility and integrity of gambling operations within state. Commissioners said the need for detailed information about Spectacle investors is especially urgent since many are connected to former Spectacle Chief Executive Officer Rod Ratcliff, who exited Indiana’s gaming industry in March after an IGC investigation showed his involvement in a federal campaign finance scandal and revealed unauthorized transfers of his Spectacle shares.

Chavis said he’ll announce his decision on June 4 whether or not to halt the IGC’s new integrity rules. He also suggested the IGC extend the deadline to June 21 for Spectacle investors to submit the required information.

A day after the Florida Senate voted 39-1 to approve a gaming compact with the Seminole Tribe of Florida, the House voted 97-17 to pass the underlying bill, SB 2A, which now will be sent to Governor Ron DeSantis.

The governor and the tribe announced they had reached an agreement on the deal last month. Under the compact’s terms, the state will receive at least $2.5 billion over the next five years and an estimated $20 billion over the course of the 30-year deal.

In exchange, the tribe will control sports betting in the state; the wagers will be allowed at tribal casinos and via a mobile app. The tribe will also control sports betting at existing horse tracks and former dog racing facilities via its new Hard Rock Digital platform.

In addition, the Seminoles will be allowed to build three new casinos in Hollywood, Florida, the location of a Hard Rock Casino, and add Las Vegas-style table games like craps and roulette.

In a statement, DeSantis said, “With this new compact, the state will now see a large stream of reoccurring revenue to the tune of billions of dollars over the next few years. The deal will also create over 2,000 jobs. I want to thank the Seminole Tribe of Florida Chairman Marcellus Osceola Jr., Senate President Wilton Simpson, House Speaker Chris Sprowls and the entire Florida legislature for getting this done for our great state.”

If the U.S. Department of Interior approves the compact, the Seminoles can launch sports betting on October 15 and operate sports wagering at racetracks, former racetracks and jai alai frontons for a share of the revenue. The tribe also will operate mobile sports betting.

Interior has 45 days to accept or reject the language of the compact.

Seminole Chairman Osceola issued a statement saying “all the people of Florida are winners” with the new compact.

“It is a historic and mutually beneficial partnership between the state and Seminole Tribe that will positively impact all Floridians for decades to come. … I must also thank our entire team for such a meaningful outcome and specifically Seminole Gaming Chief Executive Officer Jim Allen for leading the negotiations,” he said.

The sports betting provision is expected to trigger a legal challenge. State Rep. Guillermo Smith said, “We are told that this compact doesn’t violate Amendment 3,” passed in 2018, which states that gambling only can be approved by voters, not lawmakers. “Why? We’re told it doesn’t violate Amendment 3 because it’s not an expansion of gambling because of course sports betting on our phone app is happening through servers on tribal land. LOL.”

State Rep. Randy Fine, who chaired the House Select Committee on Gaming and is a former casino executive, noted, “You’re going to be able to make bets on your mobile device on sports. You can’t do that today. Whether that’s a legal expansion that violates Amendment 3, that is for a judge to decide.” He added, “Me personally, I don’t think it’s going to survive.”

However, Fine urged lawmakers to support the compact because of the large amount of state revenue the agreement would produce, with or without sports betting. The compact is expected to generate at least $500 million per year with sports betting and a minimum of $400 million per year without it. The tribe hasn’t made any payments to the state for gaming rights since 2019.

Online sports betting would be based on a “hub and spoke model” spelled out in the compact, where the tribal reservation is the hub and parimutuels are the spokes. Servers on the tribe’s reservation would process sports bets placed on mobile phones or at parimutuel facilities, even if the bettor using a mobile phone is not located on tribal grounds.

State Rep. Sam Garrison, co-sponsor of legislation related to the compact, said there is no clear legal precedent whether the hub and spoke model would be considered expanded gambling. “It is an open question, and it’s going to have to be litigated, because it’s not a black and white answer that specifically tells us whether the hub and spoke model is going to be permitted or not,” Garrison said.

No Casinos, the Orlando-based group behind Amendment 3, financed largely by Disney and, ironically, the Seminoles, said the compact is clearly unconstitutional and would violate Amendment 3 without a statewide referendum. Florida and tribal officials maintain because the servers are on tribal land, Seminole gaming operations are governed under the federal Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, not the state.

The group’s president, John Sowinski. said, “This fight is just beginning. We are committed to ensuring that the will of the people, who voted by a remarkable landslide to give Florida voters the exclusive right to authorize casino gambling in our state, will be respected. The legislature is not the final say on this matter. This compact is more of a buffet for gambling interests than sound policy for the state.” Sowinski said a lawsuit will be filed soon.

State Rep. Mike Grieco of Miami said, “When I hear this does not trigger Amendment 3, I think it’s laughable. We’re going to be in court. We’re going to lose, and we’re going to see this on the ballot. If you vote yes on this compact, you are voting to expand gambling in the state of Florida.”

Lawmakers also sent DeSantis a bill creating the Florida Gaming Control Commission to regulate pari-mutuels and enforce gambling rules and regulations. Another bill going to the governor would allow jai alai frontons, dog racetracks and a harness racetrack in Miami-Dade and Broward counties to keep operating slots and card rooms without holding live events. Other Florida parimutuels would be able to continue operating card rooms without live events, with the exception of thoroughbred horseracing tracks, which would be required to hold live racing.

However, Fine explained, the new commission would have no authority over the Seminole Tribe.

“You have to think of the Seminole Nation literally as Mexico or Canada or the Bahamas. They are a sovereign nation and in federal Indian gaming law, they regulate themselves. It’s not a policy option available to us to regulate them,” he said.

While the state has no regulatory authority over Indian gaming in this case, the federal government does. The Department of Interior and the National Indian Gaming Commission will both have to sign off on the compact before it becomes effective.

The grand prize of the five casinos approved by Virginia voters in 2019, the state capital of Richmond, was awarded last week when a committee of city officials settled on a proposal advanced by Urban One, a black-owned Washington D.C. company. Urban One, which owns and operates a network of 55 radio stations and the TV One cable network, has several other investors in the project, including Peninsula Pacific Entertainment, which would be the operator of the casino. P2E owns Colonial Downs racetrack and the Rosie’s gaming emporiums across the central and southern regions of the state, which operate historic horse racing machines (HHRs). The company also owns casinos in Iowa and New York, as well as a casino license in Louisiana it is trying to relocate from Bossier City to Slidell.

Urban One will build a $600 million casino in South Richmond if voters give their OK in a November referendum. The resort includes a sportsbook, 200 hotel rooms, a 3,000-seat theater, 100,000 square feet of gaming space, and 12 bars and restaurants.

In addition to Urban One, the original applicants included Virginia’s Pamunkey Indian Tribe, Alabama’s Poarch Band of Creek Indians, the Cordish Companies and Bally’s Corp. Bally’s, Cordish and Urban One were the finalists and it seems to have come down to neighborhood support. Bally’s was eliminated first when its site was declared to be ineligible for casino development because it would require both state and federal approvals. The selection committee refused to allow Bally’s to find a new site. There was fierce opposition from neighborhood groups as well. It was that opposition that likely sank the Cordish bid as well. Conversely, the Urban One site is in a primarily industrial area with few surrounding neighborhoods.

Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney will present the decision to partner with Urban One to the City Council next week.

“The project will create over 1,000 good paying jobs, generate a significant amount of new revenue for the city, and establish an additional economic engine in South Richmond,” Stoney said. “I applaud the work of the evaluation panel in their vetting of the proposals and engaging the entire city throughout this project.”

In addition to mild support from neighborhood groups, it appears that Urban One’s bid was helped by the fact it is a majority black-owned business. It was a major goal of the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus in the General Assembly when the 2019 bill was passed.

“It’s important that black folks begin to have a piece of the pie in these industries,” Delegate Lamont Bagby, chairman of the caucus.

The casino resort will be the first primarily black-owned casino since the late Don Barden owned a string of casinos stretching from Las Vegas to Indiana to Mississippi.

“One is thrilled the Richmond casino selection committee has chosen the best project with the best location and best team to develop a world-class entertainment destination in Richmond’s Southside,” said Alfred Liggins, CEO of Urban One. “Urban One and our diverse group of local investors are fully committed to creating good paying jobs with profit-sharing for employees, pathways to successful careers, and generating significant new tax revenues that can improve Richmond’s schools and fund community programs and infrastructure.”

The 2019 bill legalizing casinos allowed casinos in four other cities besides Richmond— Norfolk, Portsmouth, Danville and Bristol. Richmond and Bristol were the only two cities to allow competitive bids—each were advised by the Convergence Strategy Group of New Orleans. Voters in all cities overwhelmingly approved the designated casino projects put forward by the city officials. While no polls have been taken, it is expected that Richmond voters will back the decision of Stoney’s administration.

As a result of the decision, stock in Urban One shot up 60 percent to close at $9.56 at the end of the week.

Starting May 17, casinos in Las Vegas were cleared by state regulators to allow 100 percent occupancy on gaming floors, without social distancing and without masks for people who have received the Covid-19 vaccine.

The resumption of business-almost-as-usual followed the Centers for Disease Control’s (CDC) announcement saying those who have been vaccinated no longer need masks, indoors or out. On word from Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak, the Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB) ended mask mandates in casinos.

Unvaccinated customers and employees still need to wear masks, per the CDC, but no one’s bothering to check. “It’s not practical,” said NGCB Chairman Brin Gibson. Wynn Resorts said it “trusts guests to take appropriate precautions.”

According to the Reno Gazette-Journal, on May 1 Clark County officials gave casinos the all-clear to raise occupancy limits from 50 percent to 80 percent. Some casinos have no occupancy restrictions at all.

And now, all that pent-up demand is translating into business. According to Newsbreak.com, in March Vegas Strip gaming revenues topped more than $500 million for the first time since February 2020. Several analysts project that April’s gaming revenues will be just as impressive. And importantly for Las Vegas, conventions are also on the rebound.

In 2019, a record 6.65 million convention delegates visited Las Vegas, accounting for more than 15 percent of the market’s 42.5 million visitors for the year. Of course, in 2020 the convention and trade show business was decimated by Covid-19, but now, the shows are returning. The Las Vegas Convention Center welcomed back conventioneers May 12-14, with the Tobacco Plus Expo. Other conventions including G2E are also gearing up to return.

“The upcoming calendar for meetings and convention highlights the resiliency that Las Vegas has as a business destination,” said Brendan Bussmann, director of government affairs for Las Vegas-based Global Market Advisors. “While the market continues to rebound, this helps fill the midweek within the resorts across the city and especially the Strip. In addition to adding to gaming revenue, this will also help restaurants and other amenities recover that have been at capacity challenges over the last year.”

According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, conventions are already booking for 2022, notably, CES, sponsored by the Washington-based Consumer Electronics Association, which will fill every convention hall at the Las Vegas Convention Center, the Sands Expo and Convention Center and the Mandalay Bay Convention Center next January.

Other casinos with convention facilities, including those owned by Wynn Resorts, Caesars, MGM Resorts and the Sands Corp. are booking up too.

“As we continue to recover from the Great Shutdown, it’s good to see the return of many shows that unfortunately had to cancel last year because of the pandemic,” said Bussmann. “Q3 and Q4 look solid this year as we head into CES to kick off 2022 in what appears to be a solid schedule moving forward.”

Commission Chairwoman Marilyn Kirkpatrick warned that, despite the relaxation of Covid safety protocols, “We do still have to stay on top of this because nobody wants to go backwards.” She told News 3 in Las Vegas,

“The pandemic is by far not over, but this is at least getting us back to normal so that we can maintain some normalcy and continue to be responsible.”

And Dr. Fermin Leguen, chief health officer for the Southern Nevada Health District said monitoring the virus is “going to be a long-term effort.”

Also in Vegas, most poker rooms and tables at casinos in Las Vegas have removed the Plexiglas dividers that were installed between player positions during the most active part of the Covid-19 outbreak. Customers may now play face to face at the Wynn, the Encore, and all Caesars and MGM properties.

As of last week, a few resorts has retained the dividers—the Venetian, Golden Nugget and Orleans—but all of them are expected to be absent at the World Series of Poker this fall.

On May 13, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced that it no longer recommends masks or social distancing for people who have been vaccinated. Masks are only required by unvaccinated patrons of Nevada casinos, but few casinos require vaccination proof from unmasked customers.

The Las Vegas Review-Journal reported that poker resumed in Las Vegas in June 2020 with four players at each table under social distancing guidelines. Then five-handed and six-handed games began. “Eventually, regulators allowed rooms to offer eight-handed games with dividers, and that remained the standard until this week,” the newspaper reported.

The Wynn is playing nine-handed, and the Orleans said it would go to nine-handed for tournaments while sticking with eight-handed for cash games.

“Thank you all for your patience and understanding over this last year,” the Orleans poker room posted on Twitter.

Around this time in 2020, Andre Carrier was working more, worrying more and logging more on-the-job hours than in any other year—despite the fact that his company’s business was, for the most part, at a standstill.

As chief operating officer of Eureka Casinos, a Nevada-based, employee-owned gaming company, Carrier recalls that he was “more consumed with how to better operate a drive-through food pantry than anything else.”

At the time, “We had zero revenue,” he told GGB News. “We were trying to find a way to provide essential services and some compensation for our employees. We were trying to make sure we were managing our treasury correctly, because workers were still getting 100 percent benefits.”

Sometimes, he said, “That feels like 10 years ago. And at others, it feels like 10 minutes ago. That’s the schizophrenia of the current moment.”

Though Eureka casino were closed from mid-March to early June, the company’s “employee-owners” were anything but idle. They connected through virtual meetings and Facebook forums. They rotated volunteer shifts at the food pantry, so they could see each other in person.

“I did more video communication with our employees than I’d ever done before,” said Carrier, “and that sharing, the messaging back and forth, had a lot to do with keeping our energy up and keeping our hopeful nature.”

The company also set up a vaccine center at its Rising Star Sports Ranch in Mesquite, and, like a number of other gaming companies, offered “a carrot” to workers to encourage them to get in line. Staffers got $100 on vaccination, and an additional $100 when 75 percent of the workforce at their property was vaccinated.

All for One

Founded by Ted and Doris Lee, Eureka Casinos operates eponymous resorts in Las Vegas and Mesquite, Nevada as well as the Brook in Seabrook, New Hampshire. In 2015, the Lee family sold the company to the employees, making it Nevada’s first 100 percent employee-owned gaming firm. Eureka made the Fortune list of Top 100 Best Medium Workplaces in 2018 and 2019, and has been named a Great Place to Work-Certified company.

Eureka is “a hopeful group as a company,” Carrier said. And starting at the bottom of the Covid shutdown, “we focused our efforts on being a part of the answer.”

That’s not just a feel-good philosophy for Carrier and his partner, Eureka Chairman and President Greg Lee. Through the Ted and Doris Lee Family Foundation, they backed up their talk with some serious investment: a million-dollar innovation prize offered through the University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV) Business School.

The Lee Prize for Innovation and Entrepreneurship was offered for products and services that could keep the travel and tourism industries intact and functional during a health crisis like Covid-19 and in the more safety-conscious environment created by the outbreak.

“We really consumed ourselves with uncovering those innovations, and right now, we’re really consumed with getting those products to market,” said Carrier. “They’re going to have a profound effect—and it was another way of keeping ourselves busy and active during the shutdown.”

Safeguarding the Future

The prize committee looked at more than 250 submissions from 32 states and nine countries. Among the winners was Purlin LLC, creator of a single-use, fully biodegradable bedsheet that’s used once, shipped back to the manufacturer and recycled into new sheets in a closed-loop system.

“That’s up and operational and being adopted by many of the major hotel chains,” said Carrier. “In addition to safety and sanitation, the water savings from that product has an even bigger impact.” According to Purlin’s website, a 100-room hotel uses 400,000 gallons of water annually to launder cotton-based sheets and another 900,000 gallons of water to replace damaged inventory. Switching to Purlin sheets reduces that usage to approximately 32,000 gallons of water per year.

Another winning innovation was created by Promethium, “a remarkable company that uses a photocatalytic process that’s been successful in the lab in capturing and killing the coronavirus,” said Carrier. “Hotel air filtration is going to be holy grail of the next decade, and to capture and kill viruses like this is attainable.”

He said the system will be market-ready “within the next 12 to 24 months.” Should Covid infections return on a large scale or a similar health crisis comes along, “the next time around will very different,” said Carrier.

Other winners include:

• GoodWRX, an app-based work scheduling software that simplifies job-sharing
• Hotel Data Cloud, a global hotel content distribution database that gives hotels control over listings on any booking channel
• Maidbot, cleaning robots that also provide key data to management

‘A Starting Point for Recovery’

When the awards were announced, Leith Martin, executive director of UNLV’s Troesh Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, hailed the innovators, saying, “Covid-19 has created a difficult situation for everyone around the world. The Lee Prize has created a starting point for recovery, especially for the hospitality, tourism and entertainment industries.”

At this transitional moment, as United States casinos move from reduced capacities, Plexiglas barriers and mask mandates to near-normal, Carrier is optimistic, but not caught up in the jubilation.

“An essential part of managing the future successfully is learning from what just occurred. We’ve taken some heavy financial losses, and we’ve lost men and women that we worked with. It’s naive to think that this can’t happen again, and the next time, we better show we were better prepared.

“This is the time to do after-action reports,” he said, “and these may be the most important after-action reports that we’ve ever done. When difficult things happen in your personal life or in business, you win and you learn some.”

On May 12, the U.S. House passed the Ysleta del Sur Pueblo and Alabama-Coushatta Tribes of Texas Equal and Fair Opportunity Act, which would allow two tribes to offer Class II gaming. It now goes to the Senate, where it faces an uncertain future.

Alabama-Coushatta tribe issued this statement after the passage: “This bill is critical to the future of our tribes and all of our neighbors in East Texas.” It added, “We are grateful to have cleared this first major hurdle and look forward to working with our senators to get this passed into law. Hundreds of families are counting on this bill for their livelihoods.” The tribe has been operating the Naskila Entertainment Center without a compact.

The two tribes are currently not covered by the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act of 1988 and can legally offer gaming only if the state agree. Only the Kickapoo Traditional Tribe of Texas is covered by Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA). It has offered bingo-based games since 1996. This is because the two tribes agreed to not offering gaming when they were recognized by the federal government in the Indian Tribes of Texas Restoration Act in 1987. When IGRA was passed a year later, they were left out, apparently by an oversight.

Gaming is largely illegal in the Lone Star State. The Texas state government has opposed the two tribes being part of IGRA. Texas’s U.S. Senator John Cornyn opposes the bill, backing Texas Governor Greg Abbott and other top state officials.

The tribes have gone to federal court over the years and lost consistently. Many see the bill as their only chance to offer gaming.

Although Senator Cornyn opposes the bill, several members of the congressional delegation support it. A similar bill authored by Rep. Brian Babin, an East Texas congressman, was supported by a dozen members of the state’s delegation.

That bill hit a stall when Cornyn wrote the Senate’s Committee on Indian Affair: “Under Texas law, most forms of gambling are prohibited, including on Ysleta del Sur Pueblo and Alabama-Coushatta tribal lands. This matter is currently the subject of litigation in federal court.”

One of the original sponsors of IGRA, Rep. Don Young of Alaska, now supports the bill that would make the two tribes part of that bill. During the House debate before the vote he told the author of the bill: “This legislation rectifies that problem. I congratulate you on this, and I’m just happy to be a sponsor of the legislation, work with you to try to get this done and this will be justice served to all.”

In Louisiana, a proposal to allow a public referendum on allowing a casino in Slidell stalled two times in the House before lawmakers ended up giving it strong support one day later. The sponsor of House Bill 702, state Rep. Mary DuBuisson, said, “There are a few questions that need to be answered. I want to wait until I feel it’s right.” Ultimately the House voted 63-28 in favor of the bill, 10 more votes than needed in the 105-member chamber.

The bill, which would let St. Tammany Parish voters decide whether they want a casino, now moves to a Senate committee. If it passes that chamber, the referendum vote would occur in October.

The discussion began when Peninsula Pacific Entertainment made a bid to move the license of the shuttered Diamond Jack’s casino in Bossier City to Slidell.

DuBuisson and state Senator Sharon Hewitt, sponsor of a similar measure in the Senate which previously was blocked twice by the Senate Finance Committee, have said they simply want to give St. Tammany voters the opportunity to decide if they want a casino near Slidell, located off Interstate 10 at Exit 261. Officials said the proposed $250 million casino and 250-room hotel would create 1,700 jobs during construction and 1,900 permanent jobs and generate additional revenue for the parish. DuBuisson said the casino would keep in Louisiana up to 33 percent of the money state residents gamble at Mississippi Gulf Coast casinos.

DuBuisson noted St. Tammany Parish President Mike Cooper and other business and political leaders supported HB702. Opposing the measure were Slidell ministers working with the Louisiana Family Forum and lobbyists working for operators of casinos in Louisiana and Mississippi; casinos in Harvey and Kenner stand to be impacted the most by the proposed Slidell casino.

Nevada’s Station Casinos has petitioned the city of North Las Vegas for a second one-year suspension of non-restricted gaming and liquor licenses at two of its properties, Texas Station and Fiesta Rancho. The request seems a clear indicator that Station has no plans to reopen the casinos anytime soon.

The two casinos closed March 17, 2020, and rumors went around last year that they would be demolished, along with the Fiesta Henderson.

According to Newsbreak.com, in a May 13 conference call with JP Morgan analysts, Station CEO Frank Fertitta III, Vice Chairman Lorenzo Fertitta and CFO Stephen Cootey said they would move ahead with their long-planned Durango Station in the Las Vegas Valley, with groundbreaking in the first quarter of 2022. The budget for the property with a 1,000-room hotel and 120,000 square feet of gaming space, is estimated at $400 million to $500 million.

That’s far less than Station’s budgets for the Red Rock Resort ($925 million) and the Palms ($662 million), which the company recently sold to California’s San Manuel Band of Mission Indians. Station clearly thinks it will be money well spent, as Durango Station is located in an area with a high Asian-American population and no real competition within five miles. Also, the population density in the three-mile radius around Durango Station would be higher than that for Red Rock Resort.

With those factors in mind, JP Morgan Joseph Greff projected a 15 percent to 20 percent return on investment for Durango Station.

Frank Fertitta III, chairman and CEO of Station parent company Red Rock Resorts, told analysts on a first-quarter earnings call that the location, along Durango Drive just south of the 215 Beltway, will see a groundbreaking for a hotel-casino early next year.

Fertitta said the plan is finally going forward because of the end of the pandemic and the fact that the 71-acre parcel is located in one of the fastest-growing areas of the Las Vegas Valley. “Go do demographics around every local casino site in Las Vegas, and you’ll see that Durango is an absolute no-brainer,” Fertitta said, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

The company acquired the property in 2000, and according to the newspaper report, a site plan revealed in 2008 reveals a plan for two hotel towers, a casino, a movie theater and several retail offerings. Plans to tackle the project the following year were scrapped as the Las Vegas real estate market and the economy in general reeled from the Great Recession.

For now, the Palms Casino Resort remains shuttered, pending its sale to the San Manuel Band.

The New York Gaming Commission says that four state casinos still owe a total of $14.7 million (and growing) in past oversight fees that have been accumulating since they were first imposed between April 2017 and March 2019.

According to the Comptroller’s Office, the commission failed to bill or collect fees from Rivers Casino & Resort, Lago Resort & Casino, Resorts World, and Tioga Downs Casino. So far none of the fees have been paid.

The balance in uncollected fees appear to be the commission’s fault, rather than the casinos because the commission says insufficient regulations prevented it from billing.

Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli told 10News: “The Gaming Commission must do a better job staying on top of New York’s ever-expanding gaming footprint. The commission should collect all oversight charges that casinos are supposed to cover.” He added, “The commission has made some changes, but it needs to do much more, especially as the state is exploring issuing licenses for three new casinos and recovering from the pandemic.”

Laid-off casino and hotel workers gathered outside the Nevada statehouse in Carson City last week, demanding that lawmakers require their former employers to rehire them at pre-pandemic wages, rather than hire new workers for less.

Nevada’s powerful Culinary Union and other unions support the effort and contend that any members who had worked at least six months before being laid off last year be brought back under the terms of their old contracts.

Matthew Seevers, who worked for 15 years as a bartender at Stations Casino before being laid off last spring, asked the Associated Press, “Why should we not have our jobs back when these places open up? We put our time in and we were a family. Now they don’t care. They just throw us away to the curb.”

The AP reports that workers’ “Right to Return” proposal has pitted Culinary against chambers of commerce, casinos and the Nevada Resort Association.

“The bill would further damage Nevada’s recovery efforts by placing an arduous burden on employers through needless, time-consuming and counter-productive requirements that will significantly slow down rehiring and further delay bringing more Nevadans back to work,” Nevada Resort Association President Virginia Valentine told the Nevada Current in April.

Phil Jaynes, president of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees Local 720, wholeheartedly disagrees, and said hiring less skilled workers to save on wages isn’t good business. He told the picketing workers the proposal is “right for corporations and it’s right for the workers.”

Barry Lieberman, an attorney for South Point Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, said the proposal would discriminate against people who want to be new casino hires. “There are many qualified Nevadans who are unemployed and trying to support their families,” he said. “The bill will have the effect of discouraging the hiring of anyone who was not previously employed by the South Point and is a disservice to those people seeking employment to support their families.”

Amid a growing national conversation about minimum wage hikes—the so-called “Fight for $15”—a California tribal casino has voluntarily stepped up to increase worker compensation.

Recently, 2,000 employees at the Graton Resort and Casino at Rohnert Park in Northern California got a pleasant surprise—a pay increase of at least $2.50 an hour, raising the minimum hourly wage to $18.50. The property is the third largest employer in Sonoma County.

Salaried employees will get a 10 percent bonus, and those working more than 20 hours per week will get full medical benefits, along with meals. This despite the fact that the casino was operating at 25 percent capacity in March, when the increase was first announced (the enterprise did get some funding from the federal Paycheck Protection Program).

Greg Sarris, chairman of the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria, told GGB News his tribe was happy to buck the trend that became the norm during the Covid-19 pandemic. With shutdowns and capacity limits, the hospitality industry lost more than 700,000 jobs.

“Simply put, it’s the right thing to do,” said Sarris. “We believe in dignity in the workplace, and provide all of our team members a wage that allows them to live comfortably and be rewarded for the hard work and success they have enabled us to have.”

As sovereign nations, tribes aren’t required to abide by county or state rules on minimum wages. The Bay Area is a notoriously expensive region to live in, as Aamir Deen, president of Unite Here Local 49, which represents casino workers, told the San Francisco Chronicle. “The cost of living in the Bay Area is so high and so many people pay a really large portion of their income towards rent,” he said. “This makes that portion more manageable.”

Kathy Winfield, a public areas cleaner at Graton Resort & Casino, told Native Business magazine, “The cost of living makes it really hard to hold on in Sonoma County. It’s been years since I had the chance to take a family vacation. … Family is so important, and this raise will give us the chance to start a new chapter.”

The idea to raise worker pay and benefits “was totally the tribe’s idea, unilaterally,” said Sarris. “The tribe’s mission is social justice and environmental stewardship. Social justice starts at home. … Again, it’s only the right and just thing to reward those who work so hard to enable us our success.”

The increases were implemented though money is tight and the resort continues to operate at less than 100 percent capacity. “We worked hard and looked at our numbers and figured out what we can afford to do, and implemented our decision accordingly,” Sarris said. “It will lead to no staffing cuts. We will not have to cut any expenses.”

Besides, the tribe is confident it will see a return on its investment in terms of worker retention, job satisfaction and job performance.

“First, the enthusiasm and gratitude of the team members is reflected in their work and treatment to our guests. It’s simply a win-win. Second, we’ll keep the best work force. Third, there’s no shortage of people of wanting to work at Graton Resort and Casino. The word is out that Graton respects and treats its team members well. Fourth, it sets an example for other hospitality businesses to do likewise and to see the great benefits as the result.”

In April, Oregon’s Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians (UIDC) raised its minimum wage to $14 per hour. The tribe operates the Seven Feathers Casino Resort in Canyonville.

“UIDC has always offered strong support to its team members,” Travis Hill, vice president for business operations, said in a news release. “We’ve always known that when we achieved our goals financially, we wanted to share that success with our team members.”

And just this week, the Gun Lake tribe in Michigan raised its minimum pay over 30 percent to $14 an hour.

“The Gun Lake Tribe recognizes that the past year has presented all of our Team Members with unique circumstances and an ever-changing environment,” said tribal Chairman Bob Peters. “We are proud of our team members for pushing through every challenge while continuing to provide superior service and maintain a safe environment. On behalf of our tribal council, and all of our tribal citizens, I say a heartfelt thank you to the Gun Lake Casino team. We are honored to provide the team with these well-deserved compensation increases.”

“We recognize the value of recruiting and retaining top-tier talent at all levels of our organization. Providing the best starting wage in the area will continue to solidify our mission and demonstrate the appreciation we have for our valued team members,” said Sal Semola, president and chief operating officer. “I applaud the Gun Lake Tribe for the continued investment into the local community and for their dedication to preserving Gun Lake Casino as a leading employer in the region.”

Could higher pay rates become a trend among tribal casinos?

“I will never tell another tribe what it should do,” said Sarris. “All tribal leaders must respect our respective tribe’s sovereignties. We are sovereign nations, and that must always be considered first. That said, I believe that all people who employ others should treat those they employ with utmost respect and dignity and pay their employees a wage that enables the employees a healthy and comfortable life.”

Meanwhile, the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour has not been raised since 2009. President Joe Biden backs legislation that would raise the rate to $9.50 and gradually increase it to $15 by 2025.