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Gambling in Illinois: near saturation?

One issue sure to dominate legislative agendas this spring is riverboat gambling for Chicago. In January, the legislature's Economic and Fiscal Commission released a study of gaming in Illinois which found that in fiscal 1993 the state received a record $720 million in revenue from wagering on horse racing, the state lottery, and riverboat gambling, a 10 percent increase from the year before. During FY1993, approximately $6.4 billion was bet at race tracks and off-track betting parlors, on Illinois riverboats and on lottery tickets, according to the commission, whose data were used for the charts on this page. Among the commission's other findings: • Horse racing has consistently generated about $45 million in revenue for the state annually since fiscal 1990 and about $1.3 billion has been wagered on horses for several years, though the makeup of the racing handle has shifted from on-track to off-track betting. • Total lottery sales dropped $64 million is fiscal 1993, the second decline in three years. "It cannot be determined at this time," noted the commission report, "if the drop was due to additional competition from riverboats, the lack of rollovers in FY1993    or simply a signal that lottery sales have matured and may be on the verge of eroding." • The $3.5 billion bet on riverboats contributed $86 million to the state in 1993. The commission found that smaller    communities with riverboats demonstrated an increase in drinking and eating sales, while larger communities showed no such    measurable effect from riverboats. "Illinois is likely much closer to its gambling saturation point today than it was a few years ago," the commission study concluded. "As the state nears its saturation point, and as surrounding states also offer more forms of gambling, growth in gambling revenue will likely slow and begin to level off." Donald Sevener

Figure 1. Amount wagered in Illinois, 1975-1993 Figure 2. Illinois gaming revenue, by type, 1975-1993                 Figure 3. Per capita wagering, 1991                 Illinois, neighboring states,                 large industrial states Figure 4. Total sales, Illinois lottery, 1975-1993

30/May 1994/lllinois Issues