Odds On Racing - Harness Racing

Illinois Racing Gets Relief

May 5, 2006

House Bill 1918 passed both the House and Senate Friday. The bill is waiting for the Governor's signature. The money comes from a 3 percent tax on the casinos in Elgin and Aurora and the two in Joliet. The tax would be in place for the next two years. Downstate riverboats would not pay the tax, which is estimated to bring in $36 million annually. The House vote was 66-37. The Senate approved the deal 40-16. A spokeswoman for Gov. Rod Blagojevich said he supports the plan and will sign it into law.

Supporters said the horse racing industry's economic bloodlines extend beyond the tracks, and the added millions will ultimately help horse breeders, horse farms, backstretch workers and thousands of others.

"This will help an industry with 35,000 employees and hurt no one," said state Rep. Robert Molaro, a Chicago Democrat who sponsored the plan. Supporters argued the state owed the horse tracks because they were supposed to get a share of the profits from a Rosemont casino lawmakers approved in a 1999 deal. That casino was never built, so the tracks got nothing. The tax was put in place only for two years because at that point, its supporters believe, there will be profits from a new casino to pick up the slack. Molaro and others believe the state is on the verge of a major expansion of gambling to balance future budgets without raising income or sales taxes. The tax also would expire should the horse tracks win legislative approval for slot machines, something supporters said they believe is likely soon.