Just as Resorts World Queens has begun expansion into a full-scale casino, the property is in a dispute with New York state. The clash is over payments the state requires casinos to make to support the state’s horse racing industry.
The casino argues that the “racing support” payments of at least $150 million per year are part of its taxes. However, the New York Gaming Commission contends the payments are to be paid in addition to the casino’s taxes.
All three projects that received downstate casino licenses in December will eventually make the support payments. But they will split the payments among the three properties. But since Resorts World is the only one open, it’s bearing paying the whole tab.
It will be a few years before a Bally’s casino opens in the Bronx and a Hard Rock Casino next to Citi Field opens. Thus, Resorts World could pay as much as $500 million over the next for years.
The casino is now pushing lawmakers to make changes. A proposed bill would have the NYGC instead make the payments from the state’s commercial gaming revenue fund, which Resorts World pays into via taxes.
Meaning Behind Tax Rate At Issue
Funds in the commercial gaming revenue fund are currently used for education and public transportation. Under the plan, the casino would begin making the horseracing support payments once another New York City casino is open.
Resorts World spokesperson Stefan Friedman told Focus the company has a “15-year record of sending more than $4.5 billion to the state in education funds, more than $2.5 billion to horseracing interests, and now $500 million and growing to the MTA.” He added that the casino “strictly abid[es] by the payments we agreed to in our winning bid for a commercial license.”
That’s where the discrepancy in viewpoints comes in. When the company submitted a bid for the casino, that proposal included a 56% tax rate on slot revenue and noted that the rate is “inclusive of racing support.”
The NYGC has previously said no bidder would pay a different tax rate than the one included in its proposal. Resorts World is now pointing to its tax rate in the initial bid.
“It’s a matter of interpretation,” Sen. Joseph Addabbo (D) told New York Focus. He chairs the Senate Committee on Racing, Gaming, and Wagering and has been a major supporter of gaming expansion. “That’s part of the problem, to get people at a table to decipher what is the meaning of the 56%?”
Struggling Horseracing Industry
The support payments are meant to subsidize the New York horse racing industry, which has struggled for several years. According to the NYGC, total handle from the state’s tracks and off-track betting (OTB) facilities reached $2.1 billion in 2024.
That was up from $1.6 billion in 2014, but the number is basically flat when considering inflation. Numerous OTB venues have closed in recent years, including the state’s entire Catskill Regional OTB.
Despite that, the industry generates an annual economic impact of $3 billion and supports nearly 20,000 jobs, according to reports. In addition, Belmont Park on Long Island is currently undergoing a $455 million renovation to modernize the historic facility.
The renovation comes as the Belmont Stakes, the last leg of the Triple Crown, is set to run on Saturday. While revenue in New York may be stagnant, some in the industry have pointed to a revival thanks to the popularity of online sports betting.
Prior to this year, betting on the Kentucky Derby saw record numbers over the last few years. This year’s race brought new viewership records as handle may have been affected by prediction markets.
