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Gambling Funding New York Budget to Avoid Tax Increases
ALBANY, NEW YORK --
One thing that anti-gambling advocates had better realize: US citizens are much happier to expand casino and gambling regulations than they are to raise taxes. In each state facing big budget deficits, politicians decide more gambling is a far easier sell than tax increases.
New York is the latest state to confront a major budget shortfall. Governor David Paterson plans to remove restrictions limiting hours and areas of availability for gambling games, hoping to generate $500 million this year from gambling sources for state coffers.
James Maney, executive director of the New York Council on Problem Gambling, says, "We’re very concerned that when things get tough for state government, we’re going to make it easier for New Yorkers to lose more money."
But to legislators and political leaders, this is precisely the point. If the budget expenditures are kept as high as before the recession, then new revenues must be created. If money is going to come out of their pockets, taxpayers would rather have it be for entertainment, with a possibility of hitting a jackpot, than just writing a bigger check to Albany.
Of course, the alternative would be to lower expenses and limit government, which would probably also be ok with the people. But it would mean ceding some of their power by politicians, and if you think pulling teeth is tough, you've never tried to separate a politician from his bureaucracy.
So, the solution that best keeps spending up without increasing taxes is to add more gambling and take a big cut for the state. Sorry, problem gamblers, but you're just grist in the mills for governments out of control.
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