Illinois: video gambling revenue falls US$363 million
Revenue from video gambling machines in Illinois has plummeted due to the three-months of Covid-19 lockdown.
US.- Revenue from video gambling machines in Illinois fell by more than US$363 million year-on-year for the period March to May.
Machines have not been operating since mid-March due to measures imposed by government to prevent the spread of Covid-19. According to the Illinois Gaming Board, casino and video gaming will be allowed to resume starting today (July 1).
State Senator Dave Syverson, said: “Each day that it’s not turned on for video gaming, that’s money away from small business, local municipalities, and the state of Illinois. Three levels are all helped by turning video gaming back on. They’re all set. They’ve spent the money, they’ve made the investments, they’re ready to go.”
Net terminal income for March to May 2020 was US$88.1 million, compared to US$451.2 million in the same period in 2019. In the same three months last year, the state’s share of revenue was $112.8 million of that, while this year the state received just US$24.7 million.
Springfield is the city that felt the most the impact. Considered the largest video gambling jurisdiction in the state, it has 134 establishments hosting 683 video gambling terminals. Springfield brought in nearly half a million dollars in video gambling taxes in the period from March to May of 2019. In the same period this year the city collected around US$87,000.
The crisis has severely hit the city’s economy. According to officials, the lack of hotel and convention activity because of limits on gatherings of 50 or more people is costing the city tens of millions of dollars.
