NJ potential governors support casinos

Both Jack Ciattarelli and Steve Rogers said that they would support casino expansion in North Jersey.

US.- As New Jersey is close to its elections, candidates are discussing several points that are relevant to the city’s revenue. Both Jack Ciattarelli and Steve Rogers agree that expanding gambling in New Jersey outside of Atlantic City could be a good idea.

Last year, a state-wide ballot, formally known as the New Jersey Allowance For Casinos In Two Additional Counties Amendment, got defeated after New Jersey voters rejected the proposal to expand casino gambling facilities to the northern side of the state, outside Atlantic City. Even though the ballot question failed by more than 1.5 million votes, lawmakers are still discussing the possibility as they believe that gambling expansion would boost the economy of the state, which has been experiencing a deficit for a couple of years now. New Jersey General Assembly member Ralph Caputo said that the ball that got rejected lacked of transparency and information about tax rate and projects.

Ciattarelli, who opposed the ballot last year, said that his vote wasn’t positive because he considered that there was too much ambiguity. “It didn’t say [exactly] where the casinos would go, or what the tax rate would be. I support casinos in North Jersey. Anyone north of [Routes] 78 or 80 ain’t going to Atlantic City anyway, so what’s the problem with having North Jersey casinos?” he added.

Rogers, who is competing against Ciattarelli, but is also a Republican, said that the problem with the ballot question was that it wasn’t marketed the right way. “All we heard was how casinos will draw crime and tax our highways and infrastructure. I support the idea of a world-class casino right here in the Meadowlands. This is the place that would draw not millions, but billions of dollars in revenue.”