| | |  | Last Updated: Wednesday, February 27, 2008 |  | | | Kentucky Gambling Act Picking Up Steam
- Friday, 18 Nov 2005
A month ago, we told you about the Jefferson County Teachers Association in Kentucky that pushes for legislation that will allow casino gambling from within horse tracks. Apparently, the teachers association has found an ally in the Kentucky Equine Education Project (KEEP) who is also lobbying heavily for the state to allow casino gambling at licensed tracks, which stands to generate a projected $437.5 million in revenues for the state. KEEP has approached more than 3,200 community officials in efforts to get them to sign off on the proposed bill, which they hope to introduce in 2006 General Assembly session.
The two organizations are hoping that some of the gambling revenues will be directed towards other areas in need of funding. KEEP quotes figures saying that profits from casino gambling are expected to reach $1.25 billion annually, with 35% diverted to the state. From its share, KEEP proposes that the state will allocate 40% for education, 20% for health care, 12.5% for local government, 10% for economic development, 10% for environmental agencies, 3.5% for the budget reserve, 2% for addiction treatment and prevention, and 2% for agricultural and animal research.
The organization suggests that the money will be distributed to each of the 120 counties in the state of Kentucky based on population. Racing would get 14.65% of the casino gambling revenue, while 1% would go to other breeds of horses for various programs. That would leave almost 50% for the racetracks, which would bear all the costs of constructing and operating land based gambling facilities. | |
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