religious preference, unlike Nassau OTB. Andrew Cuomo and Joe Cairo
see eg NY Const. Art 1, Sec. 3
NY files for bankruptcy because it does not believe in separation of church and state and freedom of religion
Nassau OTB must be open 365 days of the year before it goes bankrupt
J.com
Let foreign gambling companies do business in N.J., lawmaker proposes
State Sen. Ray Lesniak want to let foreign gambling
companies set up shop in the state. The payoff would be a 10 percent tax
on their winnings, plus payments into a fund to raise $20 million a
year for three years for New Jersey's struggling horse racing industry.
(Star-Ledger file photo)
By
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on November 21, 2013 at 11:05 AM, updated November 21, 2013 at 10:41 PM
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State Sen. Raymond Lesniak (D-Union), the prime backer of the state’s online gambling law, says his legislation would attract companies based overseas to relocate to New Jersey. The companies would serve up games of chance — including sports betting — to foreign players.
“Why would companies want to set up operations in New Jersey?” Lesniak said at a news conference today inside the Atlantic City Convention Center. “Well, we’ve got a great reputation for oversight and regulation. These companies, now located in Gibraltar or Isle of Man or any other offshore places, don’t have the stability — the stamp of approval — that gives a lot of credibility to their product.”
Under the bill, which has not yet been introduced in the state Legislature, the companies would be subject to New Jersey’s 15 percent sales tax on internet gaming with one big caveat: They would be given credit for any taxes paid to other jurisdictions.
The news comes as state gaming regulators prepare to let online gaming companies take the first bets over the internet in the Garden State. A five-day test of the new digital casinos begins at 6 p.m. today. If all goes well, the websites will be opened up to everyone who can legally gamble in New Jersey.
Online gambling in the GardenState is expected to produce hundreds of millions — if not billions — of dollars in new annual revenue for Atlantic City’s struggling casino industry, now on track to make less than $3 billion from gambling this year for the first time since 1992.
Adam Ozimek, a senior economist for Econsult Solutions in Philadelphia, said Lesniak’s bill would likely result in $5 billion to $8 billion in annual revenue for New Jersey’s businesses. Ozimek, who joined Lesniak at the press conference and has been doing analysis for an internet gaming trade group, said he expects between 11,000 and 16,000 new jobs in the Garden State.
“We’re looking at New Jersey’s potential to become a global leader, an iGaming hub,” Ozimek said.
Lesniak and Ozimek said it’s unclear who much tax revenue could be produced because it would depend on the tax structures of numerous countries around the world.
The licenses the state would issue under Lesniak’s legislation would not allow companies to take any bets in the United States — all gamblers would have to be in other countries.
Companies that that have permits to participate in online gambling in New Jersey — some of the biggest firms in the world do — would not be allowed to pool players in this state with players abroad if they were issued an international license.
Lesniak said he believes the measure would not violate any federal laws. He said he’s heard though back channels that the U.S. Justice Department would not mount a legal challenge.
“Justice Department doesn’t have any problems with this,” Lesniak said. “The world trade organizations may because we’ll be able to take bets from people across the world but they won’t be able to take bets from us.”
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