A gaming bill was amended to legalize and regulate Pennsylvanian online poker and casinos, and it passed easily out of a pair of Senate committees on Tuesday afternoon. But the new language includes an extremely high tax rate that threatens to stymie the PA online gambling industry before it even starts. The online casino tax rate would be by far the highest for any regulated market.
The high tax rate would likely mean that the black market isn’t shoved to the side in PA.
“It will be difficult for operators to compete with illegal, offshore operators that don’t have to deal with a 54 percent tax before they try to make a profit”
We know how each dollar of online gambling revenue is spent in New Jersey by iGaming operators there. Suffice it to say, there is not 54 cents per dollar going into the casinos’ pockets. PA online casinos will have to cut corners somewhere, and that will not be good for attracting customers or retaining them.
The bill still needs to get through a vote of the full Senate and would return to the House upon passage. (READ HERE: PENNSYLVANIA LOOKING FOR MONEY IN ANY WAY)
The bill is not a final document, but likely does represent compromises that a majority of senators can agree upon. The House can still choose to amend the bill to find middle ground on things like the high tax rate. Previously, the House has twice passed legislation with online gambling taxed at a much lower tax rate.
