Iowa casinos post record revenue for fiscal year 2022
Table games and slot machines took over $1.7bn in gross revenue.
US.- Iowa has reported record gaming revenue for the fiscal year ended June 30. Table games and slot machines generated more than $1.7bn in gross revenue and sports betting $139m.
For the year as a whole, casino visits were up. The state’s 19 casinos received 17.8 million admissions – up from 16.4 million visits the year before, but well below the 2012 record of 22 million. The last quarter (April to June) saw casino admissions fall 13 per cent below the average admissions for all fourth quarters since 2010.
In-person sports betting rose modestly in FY 2022, with a handle of $243m compared to $233m in FY2021. However, online sports betting handle more than doubled, from $985m in FY 2021 to $2.2bn.
See also: Iowa sports betting revenue falls 21.4% year-on-year
Moratorium on new casino licences
Iowa governor Kim Reynolds has signed into law a measure that places a two-year moratorium on new casino licences. The moratorium was passed by the Iowa Legislature last month. The move will block P2E’s Cedar Rapids casino project in Linn County.
Rep. Bobby Kaufmann, who chairs the House State Government Committee, said the objective was to preserve an “equilibrium” in the number of casinos. Kaufmann said he was concerned that with 19 state-licensed casinos, and 23 casinos in total, Iowa’s gambling market was saturated, which could impact on casinos’ donations to local nonprofits.
The Iowa Gaming Association’s president, Wes Ehrecke, said the group supports the moratorium. However, Linn County Gaming Association president Anne Parmley said the moratorium was “clearly targeting” the county.
