The city won’t lose $850,000 a year in casino tax revenue as feared, according to City Manager John Mezera. Instead, 11th-hour changes to state legislation have diverted the funds directly from the casinos, Mezera said.
The legislation, expected to raise $36 million, gives 3 percent of casino revenues to Illinois horse racing for two years. It affects the Empress and Harrah’s casinos in Joliet, Hollywood Casino in Aurora, and the Grand Victoria Casino in Elgin.
Municipal officials had dreaded the 3 percent tax, which originally tapped Joliet and other cities that host casinos.
But Mezera told the city Finance Committee on Monday night that legislative maneuvering shifted the target to the casinos. He said the action occurred before the city adjusted its annual budget.
The law, which doesn’t apply to the state’s five casinos outside the Chicago area, stems from a 1999 law intended to make up for money Illinois tracks lost to casinos. That legislation was linked to construction of a casino in Rosemont that was never built.