Until now there have been small nascent signs of growth in the slots market. Tiny things like a growth jump here and there have kept gaming companies hopeful that things would turn around more completely shortly. That time is finally here. States are slowly showing a growth in their gambling revenue and it is coming up somewhat consistently. That is great news since in former months it has reached a high here and there, but then soon returned to its lowered numbers. Now things are looking up due to some consistency in the market. Pennsylvania just announced that it is posting a 7.8% increase in slots revenue as compared to the same time one year ago. The Gaming Control Board noted the rise in revenue that brought $186.4 million for September. That equals out to $102.2 million considered to be tax revenue dollars.

The rise in return is welcomed news for the market. Of course since the recession, Pennsylvania like other states has been looking for some signs ore financial revival. Time and again the numbers have been down and caused a lot of stress to the market. Even though gamblers were coming back into casinos post-recession, they were slow to start wagering at the same levels they once did. This lag in a return to gaming numbers is what has hampered the market considerably though now it is showing signs of some consistent growth. Hollywood Casino at Penn National racetrack is also showing a growth. The casino posted a $19.8 million revenue stream that is an increase of 4.5% since last year. So far the gaming companies within the state have brought in $2.2 billion since July 1st. That means $772 million in tax revenue dollars to split for various programs in the state. Until the gambling revenue was on the table, many legislators were looking to serious budget cuts as the only way to get through the coming years. Namely education and jobs were on the chopping block for the coming fiscal year. Now that gambling is showing positively, it may mean saving a variety of different programs and fueling money back into the economy.

When you think of casinos in the US, normally you think of the centers like Las Vegas and Atlantic City. These are cities that have built much of their industries on gambling and tourism. Although they are the biggest and most well known, now things are changing in the world of gambling. In fact, almost every state these days is toying with bringing gambling laws in. They see the huge tax-revenue potential with gaming and want a cut. The recession left many states with few ways of managing financially and the deficits are huge. Because of this, it is going to take a few months for things to regulate and for states to find additional funding options. One problem is where are the funds going to come from?

The quick answer is to implement gambling—legally and regulated— into the state. Pennsylvania, for example, has just approved slots parlors. They are hoping that slots will bring in the millions of dollars needed to overcome state deficits in funding. When Las Vegas released its numbers last year it was surprising to find out that slots were the biggest and most reliable money-maker of all the games available. While high-rollers slowed down on the large-wager tables, gamblers continued to go into casinos to play the slots. Because of this research casinos throughout the country are trying to use slots as a money generating activity. They are hoping the millions expected will be channeled into the economy and help to bring it back from the recession. Though the recession is over, the financial aftermath is still proving to be difficult to overcome.

Right now research is showing that some form of gambling is legal in forty-eight of the fifty states. That is a huge number and that means that a wide range of legislators are hoping to capitalize on slots gaming. Only time will tell how reliable it is, but for now it seems like it is going to be a sure-fire way to bulk up state coffers. Without gambling, many legislators are arguing that there are few other avenues of finding the millions needed to handle the budgets.

Slot machine revenues are on the rise in Pennsylvania. The casinos in the state showed an increase of 32% from one year ago. The Philadelphia Park Casino and Race Track in Bensalem is one of nine operating casinos in the state. It is showing marked improvements in income. Managers were worried that the recession would be the death of the casino and race track. Once the recession happened, people’s discretionary budgets were all but eliminated completely. That meant that all unnecessary spending was cut. Of course, that included gambling and race track wagering. Race tracks have had it particularly hard in today’s time since the recession. Operators have created specials and promotions to bring in a new clients, but they have been dismal in effectiveness.

Despite changes in patronage, the casinos in Pennsylvania are still lucrative. In particular in this past year, the casino has seen an increase in revenue. The current revenue total of this year is $177.1 million, as opposed to one year ago when the revenue was $134.2 million. That is a huge jump for revenue and is a huge advantage for the state. The casinos in the state offer 55% of their slots revenue to the state’s budget. That is a hefty addition in the state’s coffer. Without slots gambling, there are few other options the state has to bring in millions of dollars. That is why the state is most likley going to continue to push casinos to expand and then tax them accordingly.

Another good change is that the state of Pennsylvania is now leveling itslef off financially since the recession. The recession of 2009/2010 was hard on every state and Pennsylvania was just one more that felt the cash crunch. Now that experts have deemed the recession completely over, recovery is happening and hopefully quickly. US states are using gambling, and in particular the very popular slots gaming, to shore up funds and bring in more money. They are hoping the added funds will help them to overcome huge deficits and to avoid cutbacks in the future. Education, expansion, police and fire development are all plans states are trying desperately to protect. Only time will tell how effective slot machine gambling revenues are for turning economies around.

Pennsylvania has seen brighter days in the world of slots. Like most other states there are heated debates going on about the industry. On one side opponents cite the rise in crime, corruption and addiction as a reason why slots gambling shouldn’t be brought into the market. On the other hand, proponents see the big revenue potential slot machines offer. With states all over hard pressed for finding funding, it’s hard to say no to the potential millions of dollars in tax-revenue the states could bring in with the machines.

Pennsylvania seems to be getting closer to bringing slots to the state. In particular one slot machine in Bensalem is highly anticipated by gamblers. The slots parlor has been hyped throughout the area with top-dollar advertising campaigns and promotions. The casino has put millions into creating a luxury, high-end slots parlor that offers a wide variety of gaming for customers. The slots parlor in Bensalem is one of the most highly anticipated operations for the area. Recently, customer lined up eagerly awaiting entry. They lined up before dawn and rapped around the corner in delight. The slots parlor advertised a hefty 3,000 slot machines on the parlor’s floor. In addition it has more than one hundred and seventy electronic table games. The casino cost them roughly $250 million to open and is right by Philadelphia Park. In a prime location, operators are hoping to take advantage of the gambling population in the area.

This new slot machine casino is replacing a temporary casino that has been around for three years. The space that was holding the slot machines and casino will now be converted back into a grandstand for the track, and players will be able to come to the new casino to play the slots games. Many of the old customers are happy to return to the new facility and are excited to see the wide variety of games available. The current building has more than 260,000 sq ft, and of that 120,000 is for the slot machines and the electronic table games. It will hopefully entertain thousands of visitors within the first few weeks alone. Operators are hoping it attracts out-of-state gamblers too and increases revenues in record numbers.

Atlantic City built its reputation on being a gambling Mecca of the US. The entertainment center worked hard to develop casinos that offered the same type of entertainment and on the same level as Las Vegas. In fact, when it was first developing it used Las Vegas as a model. Atlantic City hoped to rebuilt the success as Las Vegas and become a busy tourist area. It did and over the past few years it has brought in millions of dollars in gambling revenue. In particular, its slots offerings have been impressive over the years.

One problem Atlantic City is having though is competition. Just like tribal-owned casinos are worried about states legalizing gambling, so Atlantic City is worried about neighboring states bringing slots to their residents. Pennsylvania is the latest state that has threatened the Atlantic City economy. If Pennsylvania brings slots and table games in to the state, residents won’t need to drive to Atlantic City. They can participate in a wide variety of slots with only a small drive to a local casino.

To Atlantic City this is another huge chunk of their revenues out the window. Add to that the fact that Delaware has also decided to enter the arena, and is considering bringing in table games to add to their slot machines as well. Lawmakers for the state have been debating the move, but it seems like they are more prone to allowing them in. There are bills that have been filed now that clearly spell out how the table games would expand their gambling options from just offering slot machines in the state. The bills not only ask for approval of the table games, but they also make note of the creation of a commission to resolve gambling disputes, decide how the money will be divided between the state, the horse racing industry and the casinos, and the establishment of a new division of state police to monitor potential gambling problems. The state is projecting a need for 40 additional state employees to take on the responsibility of focusing on gambling in the state economy. Only time till tell if Atlantic City is truly threatened by the addition of slots, but it seems like the US is moving towards legalizing and regulating slots and gambling one state at a time.

Pennsylvania is in the midst of embracing changes. One township that’s hard on the heels of legislation rewriting is Straban. Straban Township citizens are waiting patiently for a decision as to when the zoning board will grant a special exception to the proposed casino to circumvent local zoning regulations. The casino in question is called “Crossroads Gaming Resort and Spa” and is going to have a lot machines, gaming tables, restaurants, retail shops and office space.  There are some problems with the decision because of the strong anti-gambling sector within legislation. If that sector can be swayed, however, the township is likely to get their slot machine parlor up and running quickly.

The local zoning board took a lot of criticism due to one of its members noting a bias against slots machines and casinos. The board member was caught with a “No Casino” sign displayed on her property. Though she has a right to have an opinion, as a member of the board she is supposed to be unbiased to best serve the needs of the Straban Township community. By posting the sign, she made it clear that she had a preconceived decision about the issue. The board member, Marcella Krammerer, was both found to be biased and asked to excuse herself from the board’s decision on slots and gambling.

There also was a second board member who was accused of having a bias. He was not asked to be removed from the decision however because his wife was the one who promoted the “no gambling” stance. He was deemed not guilty of promoting his own beliefs and allowed to continue on the board. According to David La Torre a spokesman for Chance Enterprises (developer of the Crossroads project) “We certainly believe this project fits within all zoning requirements and certainly respect the hard work the township has done on this project. They’ve had a difficult job and we’re hopeful that the vote will go our way and we expect it will.” 

Regardless of how the board decides, the question of online gambling is a difficult one. Legislators are tasked with finding ways to generate additional income, while still protecting the communities where they are built. They need to make sure there is some safeguard built into the rules and regulations of gambling and slot machine implementation. a

Big new in the industry has come about due to middlemen. The middlemen were originally created to help slot machine industry. A middleman was a “go-between for casinos and slot machine distributors. Initially they were there almost like brokers of sorts. A casino would tell them what they were looking for and the middleman would go to the market and find it. It was a convenient way for casinos to not have to search around on their own for new machines. Middlemen were also useful in that they kept casino managers aware of the newest trends in the industry and could give suggestions regarding competitors’ choices.

Unfortunately in Pennsylvania, middlemen are no longer working out. Recently corrupt politicians have taken to using middlemen to exploit the system. The problems began when politicians began to run the middlemen companies. As a result, the state Senate decided to officially eliminate the position of middlemen within the industry. Voters were outraged due to political scandals and politician’s involvement in the state legislature. Once they got wind of the situation they were quick to encourage the move to eliminate, or at minimum monitor middlemen in the market of gambling.

Although changes are imminent, that doesn’t mean that middle men are necessarily outlawed entirely. The state Senate recognizes that the business will lose money as the slot machine middlemen become optional for casinos and slot machine distributors. To remedy this situation the Senate proposes that a $500 dollar tax be affixed to each slot machine sold in the state. The tax revenue from this proposal will then be split between middlemen and slot machine addiction programs in the state. The next step in the process of eliminating the slot machine middlemen is approval in the state House but the House is encouraging the senate to look for alternative options. The House knows that some of the middlemen companies will look to possible legal options in an effort to save their businesses. To ward off the legality, the House is trying to brainstorm other options to keep corruption out of the market, but still utilize middlemen in the transactions between casinos and slot machine manufacturers.  

Although some states are complaining of declines in their slot machine revenues, Pennsylvania is not one of them. State legislators are announcing that their revenues from slot machines have drastically increased despite the recession. It’s astounding the state and the casino owners who are celebrating the steady income. They are reporting a 27% increase in slot machine revenues over the past year. An increase of that much means millions of dollars are coming into the state to aid it in finding funding and lowering the deficit.

In the state of Pennsylvania there are nine slot machine casinos. They have brought in a combined $166.3 million in revenue, which comes out to $91.5 million in tax. As a result of the money, the state’s legislators believe that this is a clear sign that the recession is over for them and they are on the road to a turnaround.  It’s been a five-year-long struggle for the state to get slot machines accepted and made legal within the state. Now that they are allowed and doing so well, the state is hopeful that its economy is on the rise. In fact, slot machine revenue is 26.7% over where it was last November. The state is also reporting that for the first five months of the fiscal year they were looking at 25% over where they were the previous year, which came out to $485.3 million. This is in comparison to just $388.2 million for the same time period one year earlier. The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board is ecstatic about the revenue and how much more successful it is than originally projected.

Legislators are stating that they will be putting revenue from slots into the reduction of property taxes, local fire departments and public works programs. If the numbers continue to grow, legislators are planning on earmarking more money for additional programs to benefit the state growth. The economy of the state has been a harrowing concern for legislators for the past few years because of problems they had with bringing in funding. The huge post-recession deficit is also a concern. With new money from slots, at least part of the deficit and public programs will be able to be managed.

Ainsworth Gaming Technology Limited of Sydney, Australia was given a license back in 2008. The license allowed the Australian company to manufacture slot machines for use in Pennsylvania. Currently the Pennsylvania Race Horse Development o Gaming Act, any licensed manufacturer is required to renew their licensing six months before their old license runs out. Ainsworth did not comply and is now being fined $13,200 for the infraction. The total $13,200 comes from a fine of $200 per day for every day the application was late. It is a way for the board to let the gaming company know that they are serious about their rules and will take disciplinary action if necessary.

The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board has general and sole regulatory authority over the conduct of gaming or related activities in the Commonwealth, including the authorization, acquisition and operation of slot machines.  The Board can levy fines or other sanctions against any applicant, licensed entity or other licensee, permittee or employee of the Board who possesses, uses, sells or offers for sale any device, equipment or material. The gaming board is very influential and their citing Ainsworth is a big sign that the company needs to better their planning.

When Pennsylvania allowed the gaming technology company to begin supplying its machines, they were assured that the company was doing all it needed to do to work within the parameters of the law. They were seemingly transparent about their part in the gaming of the state. Unfortunately, now the company failed to meet the required deadline for a license and many industry insiders are pointing out problems. Marty Glassman, gaming analyst, said, “When a large corporation starts lagging, it’s indicative of something… they can’t keep up with the licensing, then they are having problems internally. Investors wonder what the issues are also and their continued financial support is now in jeopardy.”

Although Ainsworth issued a statement that they were not “in trouble”, the company is still being watched closely by critics who believe that they are working with some turmoil within their doors. Only time will tell when the company pays the fine, gets its legal paperwork back together and when the company is once again working with the state to bring great slot machines into the market.

Pennsylvania is another state that is hoping to use slots to fund its expenses. The state had a vote on the issue and residents voted to allow slot machines into the market. Huge deficits and the promise of job creation spurred many of the voters to agree to the change. They were hoping that the new slot machines would do what legislators promised—change the market and help move the economy forward. Unfortunately, with the inclusion of slot machines there is a lot of debate.

Residents voiced their opinion on slot machines but now that the machines are being allowed, they are citing another stipulation for the machines. They don’t want them inside populated areas. Residents are opting to push for the slots machines to be installed on the outskirts of towns, rather than in them. Legislators are not as particular about logistics. Most legislators are merely looking at the potential revenue added slot machines can bring to the market. They are fully aware of the financial state of the economy and want to change it by any means necessary. If slot machine revenue can change the market, then they are hoping to move in on the possibility sooner than later.

People don’t feel the same. Many residents are citing that slot machine parlors can potentially bring crime to their areas. They are worried that crime, drugs and addictions will create adverse affects on the community. The Foxwoods Casino is listening to individual concerns. The casino was recently approved for a slot machine license in Philadelphia but now that the residents are voicing their disapproval, the casino is rethinking its decision. Foxwoods is looking into alternative locations to put the slot machine parlors and situate the machines. They are strategically trying to find a happy middle ground that brings in revenue to the community, but also keeps people happy. They know that if residents aren’t happy, they won’t gamble.

The Pennsylvania Gaming Board, on the other hand, is not as concerned with locale. In fact the board is merely concerned with the timeline for the new casino. They are insisting that Foxwoods Casino starts building and if they don’t their license could be in jeopardy. The board approved Foxwoods Casino for a 1,500 slot machine parlor to be opened by May of 2011.