No vote on allowing smoking at casinos
The Associated Press May 11, 2011 6:08PM
Illinois Senate President John Cullerton, D-Chicago, ask questions during the Senate Executive Committee hearing at the Illinois State Capitol in Springfield, Ill., Wednesday May 11, 2011. (AP Photo/Seth Perlman)
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Updated: September 29, 2011 12:35AM
SPRINGFIELD — Health activists say they have the votes to snuff out legislation that would allow smoking at Illinois casinos, but they didn’t get a chance to prove it Wednesday.
Sen. Martin Sandoval did not call his bill for a committee vote. The Chicago Democrat said he’s still building support by arguing the change would help create jobs.
Kathy Drea of the American Lung Association did not declare victory, but said she assumes Sandoval knows the bill would fail in the Senate.
Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn has said he opposes the exemption for casinos, and Senate President John Cullerton actually was the sponsor of the statewide smoking ban. Cullerton has said he is “wildly opposed” to making any exemptions in the legislation.
The Illinois House approved the measure in March, citing hundreds of millions of dollars in lost revenues from casino taxes since the state imposed the smoking ban in 2008.
In Aurora, the city’s share of taxes from the downtown Hollywood Casino has dropped consistently since the smoking ban went into effect. The city’s casino tax revenue fell by $5 million from 2007 to 2010.
The measure would allow smoking in Illinois casinos if they compete against casinos in neighboring states that also allow smoking. The American Gaming Association estimates that about 20 percent of casino patrons smoke.
A Federal Reserve Bank report in mid-2009 said the smoking ban cost Illinois’ gambling halls as much as 22 percent in revenue in 2008, while revenue surged roughly 2 percent in Iowa and Missouri and remained flat in Indiana. Attendance at Illinois’ casinos slumped 12 percent, but neighboring states saw far smaller declines.
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