The head of an important Florida Senate Committee will introduced a proposal on March 24th, 2009 that would permit the Gulfstream Park and Calder Race Course to offer the games of blackjack and baccarat, while allowing the Seminole Indian Tribe of Florida to continue offering those two card games and add the games of craps and roulette at its casino facilities.
A separate proposal on pari-mutuel gaming, also introduced by Senator Dennis Jones, would permit electronic gambling machines, a definition of Class II slot machines at the Tampa Bay Downs and all eighteen other operating pari-mutuels in Florida outside of the Broward and Miami-Dade counties. The following day, the members of the Florida House are expected to introduce one or more gaming proposals that would not include the expansion of gambling products that Jones is supporting.
Jones' proposal on pari-mutuel facilities would set a Florida tax rate of thirty five percent of revenue for new gaming machines. Tax revenue would be utilized for education programs. The proposal would also slash the present tax rate on slot machines from fifty percent to thirty five percent at pari-mutuel facilities in Miami Dade and Broward counties.
Monday, April 06 , 2009
Emma Green