Cecil County is having problems with its slot parlor plan. It was supposed to host the first slots casino in the state and the plans were set. Gambling experts were excited about the addition of slots. No one debates how lucrative slots’ gaming is. Even Las Vegas officials recently did a survey that proved slots bring in about 60% of their overall revenues. That is a huge number considering that the games were previously thought of as innocuous games in a separate room. No one knew how lucrative they would be and now they are taking over. This is why Maryland’s Cecil County legislators wanted to bring slots gambling into the market. They had an aggressive plan to work with Penn National on a 1,500-machine slots facility located in Anne Arundel County. Now that plan may be put on hold for a little longer.

It seems that the opening of the slots parlor has to be postponed because state regulators are investigating whether Penn National Gaming interfered with another gaming company’s plans to build a gaming facility. Though Penn National got the approval of the State Lottery Commission, it did not get a formal decision as to whether or not it legally handled the decision to build a slots parlor located in Perryville. Penn National’s spokesperson stated that the company is postponing their launching of the casino until “legal clarification” comes down from the state officials. The company does not want to break any rules or create problems for itself and officials would rather put plans for opening on hold then have problems with operations later. This has been a long planned building construction and is not without some issues to overcome. The plan for the slots casino though is still on the table and legislators are pushing hard for it to come to fruition. There are millions of dollars to be had over the next few years and that money would do well to help state coffers. Right now all states are still trying to work their way through the lasting deficits and huge budgetary problems the recession created. In coming weeks the issue should be sorted out and hopefully the slots parlor play will be back on track.

A 1,500 slot machine casino facility in Cecil County has received the approval of a state committee and could open to the public within a year. But state slot machine decision makers expressed their frustration and impatience with two other planned slots facilities in Baltimore and Anne Arundel County, demanding immediate action within two months. Penn Cecil Maryland Incorporated, a gaming venture led by Penn National Gaming Incorporated, is constructing a $78 million slots facility in Perryville. It is estimated to employ 320 individuals and produce $170 million in total revenue by 2015. The slots parlor is the second one to receive approval in Maryland.

The Maryland Video Lottery Terminal Location Commission awarded Ocean Downs racetrack approval to bring 600 additional slot machines in. Proposals for slots in other areas, Baltimore and the Arundel Mills Mall are still awaiting the go. Baltimore City Entertainment Group has proposed a 3,750 slot machine parlor near the Mandt Bank Stadium, however it still needs state approval. The original proposal called for 500 slot machines to be delivered, but a more aggressive plan is now underway.

Commission chairman Donald D. Fry, also CEO of the Greater Baltimore committee, requested that local governments work on the slots proposal prior to December 17^th of this year. That is the date of the next board meeting.

The commission stopped short of releasing an ultimatum but said that it may write an official letter to announce its determination. The Baltimore Board of Estimates also approved a land lease for a slots facility near Mandt Bank stadium. Overall everyone in the industry knows how lucrative slot machine parlors are and they are all trying to bring in as much tax revenue dollars as possible. In today’s economy finding additional revenue is one of the most important priorities on everyone’s agenda. Despite challenges, the industry knows that slot machines pay off. Las Vegas recently reported that about 60% of its revenues come from the slots floor. With the huge variety of slots, casino managers can easily keep the games fresh and new for gamblers to enjoy. Cecil County, Penn National and Anne Arundel County are all hoping to capitalize on the slots market and bring huge funds into their economies.