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| Thursday, September 09, 2010 |
|
| | Articles List > Article |
| | Whelan/Van Drew Bill To Help Struggling Casinos Signed into Law
Thursday, April 09, 2009
Author: Elaine Rose
Source: Press of Atlantic City
http://www.atlanticdemocrats.com/article.asp?ArticleId=10
Casinos, state to share unclaimed winnings
By ELAINE ROSE Staff Writer, 609-272-7215
(Published: Thursday, April 09, 2009)
TRENTON - Gov. Jon S. Corzine signed a bill Wednesday removing what
legislators called "archaic" and "draconian" casino regulations and making
it easier for Atlantic City gaming halls to compete in hard times and with
growing competition in nearby states.
The bill, sponsored by Sens. James Whelan, D-Atlantic, and Jeff Van Drew,
D-Cape May, Cumberland, Atlantic, in the Senate and by Assemblymen John
Burzichelli, D-Salem, Gloucester, Cumberland, and Matt Milam, D-Cape May,
Atlantic, Cumberland, in the Assembly, passed unanimously in both houses
earlier this year.
Under the new law, vendors who do only a small percentage of their business
with the casinos will now be exempt from the more burdensome state licensing
and registration requirements.
"If you want to buy a pack of gum on the casino floor, it shouldn't mean the
vendor had to jump through hoops to get the license," Whelan said Wednesday
in a released statement.
Both the casinos and the state treasury will benefit from a new provision
that allows unclaimed winnings to be divided between the state Casino
Revenue Fund and the gaming halls. The money will be split evenly this year,
resulting in an additional $2.9 million to state coffers. In future years,
the winnings will expire after 12 months and casino will keep 75 percent
while 25 percent will revert to the state.
Other provisions include:
"These reforms will make it easier for Atlantic City's casinos to do
business, and will have zero impact on the protections put in place to
protect the gaming industry from unscrupulous manipulation," Van Drew said.
"New Jersey must do everything it can to encourage economic growth,
particularly as businesses fight against the tide of a nearly unprecedented
global economic crisis."
Staff writer Derek Harper contributed to this report. |
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