Capitol Fax.com - Your Illinois News Radar » Cullerton following through on pledge to replace video gaming with cigarette tax
SUBSCRIBE to Capitol Fax      Advertise Here      About     Exclusive Subscriber Content     Updated Posts    Contact Rich Miller
CapitolFax.com
To subscribe to Capitol Fax, click here.
Cullerton following through on pledge to replace video gaming with cigarette tax

Wednesday, Mar 16, 2011 - Posted by Rich Miller

* I told you yesterday that Senate President Cullerton wanted to replace the video gaming component of the capital bill with a cigarette tax. I told subscribers today why I believed he was doing it. Cullerton unveiled his proposal today

In a surprise move, Senate President John Cullerton Wednesday took steps to gut the controversial 2009 state law that authorized video gambling machines in bars and restaurants throughout the state.

The measure, if passed by both chambers of the Legislature and enacted by Gov. Quinn, would represent a 180-degree shift from when video gambling was regarded as a $534 million cash cow to support the governor’s $31 billion capital program. […]

“It’s obviously a very controversial plan. It has yet to generate a single dollar for the capital program. Right now, the Senate president is gauging whether there is sufficient support to repeal it,” Cullerton spokeswoman Rikeesha Phelon said.

On Wednesday, Cullerton attached the repeal language to a bill he is sponsoring, but the package has not had a hearing. […]

…the Illinois Gaming Board has added about 50 investigators in preparation for the roll-out of such gaming and begun background checks on 116 license applicants after estimating the first video gambling machines would be functioning by late summer or early fall, spokesman Gene O’Shea told the Sun-Times.

Could you be for this swap?

       

22 Comments
  1. - Rudykzooti - Wednesday, Mar 16, 11 @ 2:52 pm:

    I am all for it because I don’t smoke…I doubt it will really stop anyone else from totally stopping either and if they cut down maybe it will help their overall health just a tiny bit…


  2. - OneMan - Wednesday, Mar 16, 11 @ 2:54 pm:

    So what about the money that has been wasted on background checks and the money people spent getting ready for video gaming.

    At the least I would suspect the state would have to return the licensing fees. Also would the cig tax replace the local revenue part of video gaming.

    Finally I don’t see the coin-op guys taking this without a fight.


  3. - Anonymous - Wednesday, Mar 16, 11 @ 2:56 pm:

    The licensing fee is non-refundable. Everyone who’s applied for a license knows that upfront.


  4. - OneMan - Wednesday, Mar 16, 11 @ 3:04 pm:

    Non refundable even if no licenses are issued? I can see non-refundable if denied.


  5. - downstate hack - Wednesday, Mar 16, 11 @ 3:16 pm:

    This is asinine. If they had moved froward with the video gaming in a timely manner, the State would already have hundreds of millions in the bank. Keep the video poker add slots to the racetracks and add a casino in Chicago. These taxes are self selected by the players, can garnish tourism dollars and can give a decent return to the State. A cigarette increase of these proportions will drive many more smokers to the internet with a resulting loss of revenue to the State,


  6. - Rollin' - Wednesday, Mar 16, 11 @ 3:23 pm:

    Absolutely. Cigarette taxes can increase revenue immediately and save us money in the long run by cutting costs on state funded health care. My question is why not keep the gambling licenses and hope some of that money comes through eventually? It sounds like we’ve already paid most of the costs.


  7. - Matt - Wednesday, Mar 16, 11 @ 3:46 pm:

    Joe Berrios better get down there fast and start fighting this.


  8. - amalia - Wednesday, Mar 16, 11 @ 4:10 pm:

    reminds me of a recent NYTimes story about a woman who grows her own tobacco and rolls her own.


  9. - tberry - Wednesday, Mar 16, 11 @ 4:15 pm:

    What I would be for is having the idiots in Springfield thinking about something before they did it! They are just flailing around blindly trying desperately to increase revenue. If they spent half as much time on reducing spending that they do on more taxing, borrowing, and spending our state wouldn’t be on the verge of bankruptcy.


  10. - JBilla - Wednesday, Mar 16, 11 @ 4:24 pm:

    I already pick up smokes whenever I leave the state. All this focus on cigs just reminds people to smoke. It’s like the anti-smoking ads on TV, why do you think cig companies pay for them: “Don’t smoke Jimmy, you’re not 18 yet, smoking is too cool for you!”

    Also, what is the deal with the annual ‘cig tax goes up a dollar’ idea train. Seriously, we have nothing else? No annual CTA pass? No automated bike storage? Our creativity in governing needs to be a little more user friendly. Why not get pre-tax transit benefits for car sharing? How about speed up permitting for solar installations? Create a state bank for crying out loud. Save some moola!


  11. - OurMagician - Wednesday, Mar 16, 11 @ 4:27 pm:

    So, lose a revenue source by replacing it with another revenue source? I also will wait to see the study that show the direct link between gambling and death like smoking has.


  12. - Jack Straw from Wichita - Wednesday, Mar 16, 11 @ 4:30 pm:

    Cig taxes will bring in the quickest dollars to pay for the projects. I do think if you are willing to tax those that choose to pay it by smoking, then there should be no problem with building a casino where people will choose to gamble. Slippery slope, perhaps.


  13. - dupage dan - Wednesday, Mar 16, 11 @ 4:39 pm:

    Either way the $ is coming from fools. Fools to smoke and fools to gamble. Since I don’t do either of those things I could not care less. Not that I don’t have my vices, I do.

    There looks to be a tax either way. I vote for the one that easiest and gets most of the bang for the buck. Tax ‘em both!


  14. - Bigtwich - Wednesday, Mar 16, 11 @ 4:40 pm:

    I’m with downstate hack. Add this and slots at the tracks to the mix. Probably try to pass the video gambling, again, as a separate bill. BTW, Gov Snyder, Michigan, is proposing to tax retirees’ pensions. Is he on Cullerton’s mailing list?


  15. - Objective Dem - Wednesday, Mar 16, 11 @ 5:42 pm:

    I’m in favor. I think expanding gambling comes with way too many risks. Video poker is the gateway to more gambling and more problems.

    Flip side is increasing taxes on cigs discourages use which is good for keeping health care costs down. Plus it keeps the smokers from taking smoke breaks all the time instead of working.


  16. - Chicago Bars - Wednesday, Mar 16, 11 @ 5:47 pm:

    A lot of bar owners who should’ve known better, especially downstate, sucked up the hefty beer and liquor taxes that went with the video gambling bill because they assumed their cut of video gambling would offset those higher inventory costs.

    It’s been two years of higher inventory costs due to those taxes and zero income from video poker. That 2009 bill passed in a hurry, I would gamble there will be plenty of time now for tavern owners from Cairo to Rockford to scream to their reps.

    I will also now bet the house that Wirtz wins his lawsuit against that 2009 liquor tax hike is a foregone conclusion with these mitigation bills being pushed.


  17. - Tom Joad - Wednesday, Mar 16, 11 @ 6:29 pm:

    The cig tax won’t raise the money the video poker would have raised. So the capital bill will have to be cut. Start with the member projects, specifically the grants to churches and the West Side branch of Governor’s State.
    The refusal of Chicago and many other cities to agree to allow video poker makes this idea unworkable. They will all have their hands out for part of the take from the poker proceeds even though they turn their nose up at it. The other cities who go along have the right to complain.
    This was Tom Cross’es idea. No wonder he has been quiet about any other fundraising proposals!


  18. - Park - Wednesday, Mar 16, 11 @ 6:50 pm:

    both taxes are regressive, but I stopped smoking couple years back, so whatever. Probably won’t ruin innocent lives the way gambling does.

    But I’m still hoping the Court throws the whole bill back at the GA. Now THAT would be fun to watch.


  19. - walter sobchak - Wednesday, Mar 16, 11 @ 8:39 pm:

    Now if he would just stop the Department of Revenue’s smelly handoff to their current clueless lottery vendors and require a competitive bid process the state might actually increase lottery profits.


  20. - Anonymous - Wednesday, Mar 16, 11 @ 9:19 pm:

    Video poker was snuck through. Now, lets see if it can die on its own (by vote.) The Trib says Cullerton will only push this if the cig tax flies. It’ll be interesting to see how the Repubs will vote on this.


  21. - x ace - Wednesday, Mar 16, 11 @ 10:26 pm:

    Repeal it - then, if going to revisit Video poker - Legalize it only in Veterans and long established fraternal clubs. No bars or truck stops or private businesses .


  22. - chicago jim - Thursday, Mar 17, 11 @ 4:27 pm:

    Talk about something being snuck through. How did Illinois wind up with Power Ball Lottery? This costs our poorer taxpayers hundreds of thousands more than video poker ever could. Yet it got by us about 2 years ago without any public discussion.
    Where were the anti gaming lobbies then ?


Sorry, comments for this post are now closed.


* Isabel’s afternoon roundup
* HGOPs whacked for opposing lame duck session
* Uber’s Local Partnership = Stress-Free Travel For Paratransit Riders
* Report: IDOC's prison drug test found to be 'wrong 91 percent of the time'
* SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Session update (Updated x2)
* Illinois Supreme Court rules state SLAPP law doesn't automatically protect traditional journalism (Updated)
* ‘This is how I reward my good soldiers’: Madigan ally testifies he was rewarded with do-nothing consulting contract
* Illinois Supreme Court rules that Jussie Smollett's second prosecution 'is a due process violation, and we therefore reverse defendant’s conviction'
* Dignity In Pay (HB 793): It Is Time To Ensure Fair Pay For Illinoisans With Disabilities
* It’s just a bill (Updated)
* Open thread
* Isabel’s morning briefing
* SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Today's edition of Capitol Fax (use all CAPS in password)
* Live coverage
* Selected press releases (Live updates)
* Yesterday's stories

Support CapitolFax.com
Visit our advertisers...

...............

...............

...............

...............

...............

...............


Loading


Main Menu
Home
Illinois
YouTube
Pundit rankings
Obama
Subscriber Content
Durbin
Burris
Blagojevich Trial
Advertising
Updated Posts
Polls

Archives
November 2024
October 2024
September 2024
August 2024
July 2024
June 2024
May 2024
April 2024
March 2024
February 2024
January 2024
December 2023
November 2023
October 2023
September 2023
August 2023
July 2023
June 2023
May 2023
April 2023
March 2023
February 2023
January 2023
December 2022
November 2022
October 2022
September 2022
August 2022
July 2022
June 2022
May 2022
April 2022
March 2022
February 2022
January 2022
December 2021
November 2021
October 2021
September 2021
August 2021
July 2021
June 2021
May 2021
April 2021
March 2021
February 2021
January 2021
December 2020
November 2020
October 2020
September 2020
August 2020
July 2020
June 2020
May 2020
April 2020
March 2020
February 2020
January 2020
December 2019
November 2019
October 2019
September 2019
August 2019
July 2019
June 2019
May 2019
April 2019
March 2019
February 2019
January 2019
December 2018
November 2018
October 2018
September 2018
August 2018
July 2018
June 2018
May 2018
April 2018
March 2018
February 2018
January 2018
December 2017
November 2017
October 2017
September 2017
August 2017
July 2017
June 2017
May 2017
April 2017
March 2017
February 2017
January 2017
December 2016
November 2016
October 2016
September 2016
August 2016
July 2016
June 2016
May 2016
April 2016
March 2016
February 2016
January 2016
December 2015
November 2015
October 2015
September 2015
August 2015
July 2015
June 2015
May 2015
April 2015
March 2015
February 2015
January 2015
December 2014
November 2014
October 2014
September 2014
August 2014
July 2014
June 2014
May 2014
April 2014
March 2014
February 2014
January 2014
December 2013
November 2013
October 2013
September 2013
August 2013
July 2013
June 2013
May 2013
April 2013
March 2013
February 2013
January 2013
December 2012
November 2012
October 2012
September 2012
August 2012
July 2012
June 2012
May 2012
April 2012
March 2012
February 2012
January 2012
December 2011
November 2011
October 2011
September 2011
August 2011
July 2011
June 2011
May 2011
April 2011
March 2011
February 2011
January 2011
December 2010
November 2010
October 2010
September 2010
August 2010
July 2010
June 2010
May 2010
April 2010
March 2010
February 2010
January 2010
December 2009
November 2009
October 2009
September 2009
August 2009
July 2009
June 2009
May 2009
April 2009
March 2009
February 2009
January 2009
December 2008
November 2008
October 2008
September 2008
August 2008
July 2008
June 2008
May 2008
April 2008
March 2008
February 2008
January 2008
December 2007
November 2007
October 2007
September 2007
August 2007
July 2007
June 2007
May 2007
April 2007
March 2007
February 2007
January 2007
December 2006
November 2006
October 2006
September 2006
August 2006
July 2006
June 2006
May 2006
April 2006
March 2006
February 2006
January 2006
December 2005
April 2005
March 2005
February 2005
January 2005
December 2004
November 2004
October 2004

Blog*Spot Archives
November 2005
October 2005
September 2005
August 2005
July 2005
June 2005
May 2005

Syndication

RSS Feed 2.0
Comments RSS 2.0




Hosted by MCS SUBSCRIBE to Capitol Fax Advertise Here Mobile Version Contact Rich Miller