New Jersey lawmakers believe that passing bills will help push casinos in the Atlantic City to get financial relief from the Covid-19 loss and expand sports betting and other gambling.
On Thursday, the state legislature had to vote on four bills, including the gambling one. It will provide better relief to casinos recovering from the pandemic hit. Due to the strict pandemic lockdown, all the casinos were shut for more than 3 months.
The bill will exempt casinos from taxation on the first $90 million of free play coupons given to gamblers by the casinos for two years.
Once the bill is passed, it will relieve 8% of the state gambling tax if the in-person gambling revenue falls compared to the previous period from March 2019 to February 2020.
The bill received the final approval on Thursday from the Senate and is now going to Governor Phil Murphy.
The bill did not include several breaks when measures were introduced, including the waivers or fees, including per-machine fees for slot games.
According to the bill, the pandemic has resulted in unprecedented economic contraction devastating the regional economy of New Jersey and Atlantic City. This has resulted in historic layoffs and economic destruction.
The bill mentioned that it is reasonably necessary for the state to ensure the financial condition of the Atlantic City, assisting the region’s population to deal with economic problems.
In 2020, the lockdown and fear among gamblers to return it to gambling affected the overall casino gross profit of Atlantic City.
However, another bill will be for the constitutional amendment on whether this sports betting should be included in different games which involve New Jersey college teams.
Another bill will also allow religious and charitable groups to conduct raffles remotely, along with a constitutional amendment. This amendment will enable the organization to use all the income from the game for further support. Presently, not all senior citizens and veterans can use the proceeds from games.
