New Jersey Senator Uses New York Casino Announcement to Renew Call for Slots at Racetracks

New York is in the final stages of issuing licenses for downstate physical casinos and New Jersey Sen. Joe Pennacchio is taking the opportunity to renew his call for New Jersey to enable racing tracks in the state to offer more gaming. Pennacchio's proposed constitutional amendment would augment the presence of New Jersey online casinos and other forms of gaming in NJ with slots at horse tracks.

According to Jack Ford of News12 New Jersey, Pennacchio sees the introduction of brick-and-mortar casinos into the southern part of New York as a cannibalization threat to Atlantic City casinos.

Ford quoted Pennacchio as saying that "New Jersey continues to sit on its hands. Putting a racino in the Meadowlands would generate tons of cash for strapped New Jersey, and I think the taxpayers deserve that to be looked at. Atlantic City is complaining they don't want to be cannibalized by any other efforts in New Jersey. And yet you look at the surrounding states, they're doing all the cannibalization as we speak right now."

A "racino" is a horse racing track that not only offers pari-mutuel wagering on the races but also other forms of gaming like slots and video poker. The Meadowlands technically already fits that description because it houses a physical sportsbook in addition to taking bets on horse races.

Pennacchio has filed a proposal to allow New Jerseyans to decide whether to allow tracks like the Meadowlands to add slots to their entertainment options. However, the resolution has been languishing.

Pennacchio co-sponsored a Senate resolution with Sen. Joseph P. Cryan in January 2024 that would put the question of whether to expand gaming at horse racing tracks in New Jersey to voters. The resolution, SCR14, was assigned to the New Jersey Senate State Government, Wagering, Tourism, & Historic Preservation Committee on Jan. 9, 2024.

That was the last action the Senate took on the proposal, though. To this point, it has not even been reviewed by the Office of Legislative Services for a fiscal impact statement.

In its current form, SCR14 earmarks tax revenue from slot play at tracks like The Meadowlands for pensions for state employees along with supporting the broader gaming industry in New Jersey. It levies a tax structure similar to that which the state levies on slot play at casinos in Atlantic City.

There is no Assembly companion for SCR14 at this time. All of those indicators point to a lack of interest in the broader chambers.

As New Jerseyans are taking advantage of deals like the BetMGM Casino bonus code offer online, Pennacchio wants to diversify their offline gaming options. So far, though, his voice seems to be in the minority.

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Derek Helling