Detroit casino revenues fall 4% in August

rding to data released by the Michigan Gaming Control Board (MGCB), the three operating casinos in Detroit reported an almost 4% drop in revenues during the summer. The three venues were down to $111.5m in revenues this August, signifying a 3.8% decrease on a year-on-year basis.

MGM’s revenues were down to $47.9m, more than a 6% drop compared to the same period last year; whilst Greektown Casino’s revenues fell over 5%, down to $25m. On the other hand, the third operating casino in the city of Detroit reported positive growth during August. MotorCity Casino’s revenues grew 1.5%, reaching $38m in the summer month.

Despite these financial results, all three casinos reported 1.1% growth in year-to-date aggregate revenues. Overall, the state of Michigan collected $9m in taxes from gambling facilities during last month’s operations; nearly 4% less than what it was raked in the same period last year. The government spends the money collected from casinos taxes in social funds such as education and property tax relief.

These figures have been released as legislators in Michigan are debating a new bill which would legalise online gambling in the state. House Bill H4926 was submitted by Michigan State Representative Brandt Iden on Tuesday and is similar in makeup to Senate Bill 203, which was first proposed by Senator Mike Kowall earlier this year with exceptions in the area of tribal gaming and taxation.

Among the more notable inclusions in the legislation are provisions to allow Michigan to enter into interstate compacts with other states and jurisdictions where online gambling is legal, and a requirement that all online gaming operators in the state should offer online poker.