ST. CLAIRSVILLE - Ohio could get its first gambling casino if voters approve of it on Nov. 4.
Supporters of Issue 6 say the bill would bring 5,000 jobs to Ohio and that counties would benefit from the tax revenue.
Opponents, meanwhile, point out that Ohio's general fund would receive no tax revenue from the casino.
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Local casinos, such as the Wheeling Island Hotel-Casino-Resort, draw customers from around Ohio.
Issue 6 would authorize the construction of a privately owned casino in Clinton County in Southwest Ohio. The effort would mean an investment of $600 million in a casino being promoted by "My Ohio Now" that would be run by Lakes Entertainment of Minneapolis, Minn.
Just as West Virginia's counties have received a share of gambling tax revenues in that state, Ohio's counties are set to benefit from the casino under current plans.
The constitutional amendment that will appear before voters would require the casino to pay a tax of up to 30 percent on its gross receipts after payouts. The taxes are to be used first to pay expenses of regulating and collecting taxes from the casino, then for funding of gambling prevention and treatment programs.
The remainder would be distributed with 10 percent to go to Clinton County and 90 percent to Ohio's other 87 counties, based on population.
If another casino were to be permitted in Ohio, the tax to be paid by the Clinton County casino would be reduced as a result. It would pay the rate taxed on the second casino or 25 percent.
If approved, Issue 6 would authorize the casino to conduct any gambling presently permitted in Nevada or any state adjacent to Ohio. This would include "any type of card or table games, slot machines and electronic gaming devices - except bets on races or sporting events," according to the ballot language.
Only people age 21 and over would be permitted to place bets. Amounts of bets would not be subject to any limits now or in the future.
According to arguments filed with the Ohio Secretary of State's Office, the group anticipates that "thousands of new construction jobs" also will be required "to develop and construct the casino, hotel, restaurants, golf course, live theater and other amenities one finds at a first class casino resort."
My Ohio Now said the casino will generate an estimated $200 million annually from a special tax that only the casino operator will pay.
"The vast majority of this tax will be distributed to every Ohio county government based on the county's population," the group states in its arguments. "Additionally, the casino operator will also pay taxes that other businesses pay, including property and income taxes."
The proposed casino would encompass 94 acres.
"Issue 6 will allow Ohio to compete with the 38 other states that currently allow casino gambling," My Ohio Now comments. "Not only will it stop the flow of money from Ohio to other states - including our neighbor states of Indiana, Michigan, West Virginia and Pennsylvania - it will also be an economic stimulus for Ohio as a result of the out of state customers spending money at the casino resort."
The committee is quick to point out that Lakes Entertainment is an out-of-state company based in Minneapolis.
"Issue 6 will drain billions from Ohioans' wallets and send that money to Lake's Entertainment owners - who don't live in Ohio or pay taxes in Ohio," it writes in its arguments.
The committee has its own battle cry - "Remember the lottery?"
State lottery funds initially were intended to benefit Ohio's schools, they point out. But school budgets haven't seen an increase because of the lottery funding.
"Casinos won't save county budgets either," the opponents state. "Passing Issue 6 could make levies for vital social services tougher to pass."
And the language promising money to counties is filled with loopholes, the committee claims.
"There is no guarantee that the counties will see any revenue and could end up with nothing when another casino opens in Ohio," they state.
The casino "will hurt honest businesses in Clinton County" - as well as the people of Wilmington who voted overwhelmingly against casinos in 2006, the committee notes.