House OKs Chicago casino, slots at O'Hare, Midway
SPRINGFIELD -- A major gambling package won House approval today with provisions for a land-based casino in Chicago or a riverboat gambling palace on Lake Michigan, four more casinos around the state, and slot machines at racetracks and Chicago’s two airports.
If the plan makes it through the Senate and gets the governor's signature, it would be Illinois' biggest expansion of gambling in the more than two decades since the original riverboat gambling bill passed.
Supporters estimate the proposal would generate $1.4 billion in one-time upfront fees operators pay based on the number of positions they have. Estimates are to $500 million a year in tax revenue. That money would be distributed to education, public works projects and local governments.
The House voted 65-50, with two members voting present, in favor.
SPRINGFIELD -- A major gambling package won House approval today with provisions for a land-based casino in Chicago or a riverboat gambling palace on Lake Michigan, four more casinos around the state, and slot machines at racetracks and Chicago’s two airports.
If the plan makes it through the Senate and gets the governor's signature, it would be Illinois' biggest expansion of gambling in the more than two decades since the original riverboat gambling bill passed.
Supporters estimate the proposal would generate $1.4 billion in one-time upfront fees operators pay based on the number of positions they have. Estimates are to $500 million a year in tax revenue. That money would be distributed to education, public works projects and local governments.
The House voted 65-50, with two members voting present, in favor.