December 11, 2015
The New Jersey legislature reached an agreement Friday to submit the question of casinos outside Atlantic City to a referendum next November, allowing voters to decide whether to approve a pair of casino proposals in the state's northern counties.
Any decision to expand casinos will have to come in the form of an amendment to the state Constitution, which restricts casinos to struggling Atlantic City, according to The Associated Press.
Last month, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie vetoed an Atlantic City rescue package that had been intended to help stabilize the gambling hub, which saw four of its 12 casinos close last year. Had the bills been signed, at least $33.5 million in casino revenue would have been redirected to the city, which has a debt of approximately $400 million.
A Moody's report published earlier this month said that Atlantic City can expect to see additional casino closures in the coming years as the Northeast U.S. welcomes eight new casinos over the next year, including the Live! Hotel and Casino in South Philadelphia. Atlantic CIty's Caesar's, Bally's and the Trump Taj Mahal – all of which are in Chapter 11 bankruptcy – were identified as the casinos at greatest risk of closure.
In a market that's "already oversaturated," Moody's writes, three casinos are opening in New York, three in Massachusetts, one in Philadelphia and one in Maryland. States hoping to fill in budget holes are looking to gaming as a source of additional revenue.
Proposed casino locations in North Jersey include the Meadowlands Race Track in East Rutherford, Jersey City and Newark, among other areas.
In his rejection of Atlantic City's PILOT plan, which would have required the city's eight casinos to pay $150 million over the next two years and $120 million annually for the next 13 years, Governor Christie said the package would have simply shifted resources without requiring accountability from those who received and benefited from the funds.
Earlier this year, in a Fairleigh Dickinson University PublicMind poll, 56 percent of New Jersey residents opposed bringing casinos to North Jersey, while just 37 percent supported the proposal. The same poll found that if casinos are approved outside of Atlantic City, 42 percent of New Jersey residents favor sharing revenue with Atlantic City -- 44 percent opposed the idea. Voters said the most desirable location for a new casino would be the Meadowlands, followed by Monmouth Park, Jersey City and Newark.
