And it’s no surprise that Illinois is one of those states. From City Journal:
Gambling hasn’t lived up to its promise of closing budget gaps. Stateline, a service of the Pew Center on the States, examined ten states that had legalized or expanded gambling over the past decade and found that, in most cases, revenue fell well short of initial projections, despite the usual claim that gambling is recession-proof.
[…]
The shortfalls are greater in the states that adopted gambling earlier, since those states have lost their lucrative monopolies.
[…]
The legalization of new forms of gambling has helped destroy older ones. Pari-mutuel betting at state-sanctioned racetracks, once the most common form of gambling, now raises just $150 million in annual state revenue. In New Jersey, casinos have killed it off.
To read more on this topic follow these links:
Expanding casino gambling is the IL GOP white flag of surrender
Quotes about gambling from University of Illinois Professor John W. Kindt
