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The bad bet: How Illinois bet on video gambling and lost
Chicago Sun Times ^ | 16 Jan 2019 | Jason Grotto and Sandhya Kambhampati

Posted on 01/16/2019 11:41:22 AM PST by DUMBGRUNT

Within months of the law’s passage, the state began borrowing hundreds of millions of dollars against the anticipated revenue. Bond documents claimed video gambling machines would raise $300 million each year to help cover the debt payments.

It wasn’t until 2017, eight years after the legalization of video gambling, that the state came close to collecting that amount. By then, video gambling had brought in less than $1 billion to pay the bond debt — $1.3 billion short of what lawmakers anticipated.

But the costs of video gambling had already exacted a heavy toll on the state.

(Excerpt) Read more at chicago.suntimes.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Chit/Chat
KEYWORDS: chicagosuntimes; gambling; illinois; stupid; wireact
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Though former Gov. Pat Quinn previously had denounced video gambling as “a bad bet,” he reversed course and signed the Video Gaming Act into law on July 13, 2009.

He was right, before he was wrong.

And what happened to all the millions for education from the state lotto?

A blackhole.

1 posted on 01/16/2019 11:41:22 AM PST by DUMBGRUNT
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To: DUMBGRUNT

Are state lottos actually failures? Or does this only happen in blue states?


2 posted on 01/16/2019 11:45:46 AM PST by Greetings_Puny_Humans (I mostly come out at night... mostly.)
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To: Greetings_Puny_Humans

It’s throwing money down a bottomless pit. Revenue goes up, spending goes up more.


3 posted on 01/16/2019 11:49:21 AM PST by Fido969 (In!)
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To: DUMBGRUNT

Like a parasite eventually killing its host, the only thing which will end the corruption and leftist-statism of Illinois will be default and a crash.

they are on a runaway train towards this end anyway. Just pray it comes soon.


4 posted on 01/16/2019 11:53:51 AM PST by PGR88
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To: DUMBGRUNT

ILLINOIS= CALIFORNIA without an economy.

https://wallethub.com/edu/states-with-the-best-economies/21697/

CA=4
IL=35


5 posted on 01/16/2019 11:58:59 AM PST by vette6387
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To: DUMBGRUNT
Within months of the law’s passage, the state began borrowing hundreds of millions of dollars against the anticipated revenue.

There's an old axiom about counting chickens before they're hatched

6 posted on 01/16/2019 12:00:56 PM PST by rockrr ( Everything is different now...)
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To: DUMBGRUNT

Multiple slot locations in cities with small populations do not produce huge profits. Plus, people who gamble and lose are unlikely to gamble again.


7 posted on 01/16/2019 12:01:18 PM PST by stars & stripes forever (Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord. Psalm ( 32:12))
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To: DUMBGRUNT

Maybe Illinois can borrow some money from Puerto Rico?


8 posted on 01/16/2019 12:03:22 PM PST by blueunicorn6 ("A crack shot and a good dancer")
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To: DUMBGRUNT

Geeze that’s insane.

Take an imaginary number, project it out 10 years and borrow against that amount today.


9 posted on 01/16/2019 12:05:15 PM PST by Malsua
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To: Fido969

Or, like in Texas, where they promised that the Lotto would help fund schools and veterans.

What the Democrats (who were in charge at that time) did not tell the people was that instead of ADDING anything to the school and veterans funds, they were simply going to swap out the allocated tax dollars with the same amount of Lotto profit dollars and then keep the originally allocated tax dollars for “other expenditures!”


10 posted on 01/16/2019 12:06:07 PM PST by ExTxMarine (Diversity is tolerance; diverse points of views will not be tolerated!)
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To: DUMBGRUNT

Hell hole state...I was born in Chicago. Family in Peoria...I left 9 years ago for Georgia. Toilet of a state, and Chicago worse.


11 posted on 01/16/2019 12:12:18 PM PST by nikos1121
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To: DUMBGRUNT

The municipalities are doing well on their share of video gambling revenue. It’s money they never would have otherwise because they never would have benefited from gambling boat casinos.


12 posted on 01/16/2019 12:20:39 PM PST by bigbob (Trust Trump. Trust the Plan.)
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To: DUMBGRUNT

The Mafia says that they did just fine from the proceeds, thanks Illinois!


13 posted on 01/16/2019 12:20:54 PM PST by Pilgrim's Progress (http://www.baptistbiblebelievers.com/BYTOPICS/tabid/335/Default.aspx D)
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To: DUMBGRUNT

Mismanagement and Graft destroyed Illinois long ago... just a question of how long the corpse can keep walking before it rots completely away


14 posted on 01/16/2019 12:23:08 PM PST by HamiltonJay
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To: HamiltonJay

How many former Illinois governors are in jail now?


15 posted on 01/16/2019 12:24:20 PM PST by dfwgator (Endut! Hoch Hech!)
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To: PGR88
"they are on a runaway train towards this end anyway."

Not only do they refuse to put on the breaks, they aren't even willing to slow down the rate of acceleration.

16 posted on 01/16/2019 12:28:54 PM PST by circlecity
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To: ExTxMarine

NB: The name”Chicago”, translates into striped skunk or ‘place that smells’

The BS is miles deep.
Also, note that Lotto/gambling is a tax on the stupid.

The siren song of the Illinois Lottery
https://www.wbez.org/shows/curious-city/why-the-illinois-lotterys-been-no-jackpot-for-schools/72a184e8-f0b7-4f0e-b2e0-3ff4313bffed

“The Illinois lottery was passed by Springfield not to fund education, as many Illinois residents thought (and still think), but to shore up the general revenue fund as part of a regional transit deal.”

“Citizens who didn’t follow the entire debate closely, he says, may have had actual events “overshadowed by the expectation that ultimately [the lottery] will be for schools.””

“Here’s what he means. Let’s say the General Assembly intended to spend 100 dollars in a year on K-12 schools. Without a lottery, the 100 dollars would come from the general fund. But, if the lottery can kick 10 dollars toward schools, legislators have two choices: they could spend money on schools above and beyond the original 100 dollars, or they could lower the contribution from the General Fund.

Mooney says Illinois legislators typically take the second mindset.”


17 posted on 01/16/2019 12:36:52 PM PST by DUMBGRUNT
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To: DUMBGRUNT

I can play my Xbox for free.....


18 posted on 01/16/2019 12:37:55 PM PST by ObozoMustGo2012 ("Be quiet... you are #fakenews!")
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To: DUMBGRUNT

Legalized gambling is not the problem. HOW ITS RUN is always the problem. Mafia of both kinds (government and other) get theirs.


19 posted on 01/16/2019 12:43:50 PM PST by Yaelle
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To: Yaelle

Legalized gambling has many costs in addition to the bloated administration.

Being a tax on the mathematically challenged does not slow them down. Lemmings on welfare and legal liquor/ illegal drugs...

What was the crime rate among the Puritan community? Welfare?

Were the “Red A’s”, that big of a seller?
Was Hester gainfully employed?
Did Hester pay for Pearl’s schooling?


20 posted on 01/16/2019 1:05:44 PM PST by DUMBGRUNT
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