Signel said:

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So many people I know gamble in texas but send their money elsewhere to do it.

We need an alterative revenue stream instead of all property tax. Edibles and Casinos would be a great way to decrease property tax but increase state tax revenue.

Why would anyone be against a tax that you can decide NOT to buy or do?

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You think casinos or weed would reduce school tax or local property tax? That's cute.

YouBet said:

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Not too long ago I learned that you can gamble in Texas. It's legal. You just have to pay a seat fee to sit down and do it. I guess there isn't enough demand to date for someone to open one and get enough traffic from people who are willing to pay the seat fee before being dealt some cards?

The only reason I know this is because I know a guy who is in the process of opening a casino in DFW area. I was shocked by this as I had never heard of this. I thought it was just straight illegal but it's not. Called my best friend who gambles for a living and has played in the WSOP and he confirmed it's absolutely legal via the seat fee policy.

It's just that no one does it.

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This is about as wrong as you can possibly get literally on every level.

It's legal to play poker in a card room by paying a membership to seat time fee. I believe the largest card room in America right now s the lodge in round rock. Obviously there is demand for it. Right now there are 50+ poker rooms listed on poker atlas in Texas.

However it is still illegal to play table games against the house, blackjack, pow gai, craps, roulette, etc.

I'm no economist or accountant but every time I've been to Louisiana casinos about half of the license plates and almost all the buses in the parking lots are Texas. People that want to gamble (and all the other appeals of casinos) are going to do it. Why not keep those dollars in Texas? However it gets used the money stays home.

tony said:

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YouBet said:

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Not too long ago I learned that you can gamble in Texas. It's legal. You just have to pay a seat fee to sit down and do it. I guess there isn't enough demand to date for someone to open one and get enough traffic from people who are willing to pay the seat fee before being dealt some cards?

The only reason I know this is because I know a guy who is in the process of opening a casino in DFW area. I was shocked by this as I had never heard of this. I thought it was just straight illegal but it's not. Called my best friend who gambles for a living and has played in the WSOP and he confirmed it's absolutely legal via the seat fee policy.

It's just that no one does it.

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This is about as wrong as you can possibly get literally on every level.

It's legal to play poker in a card room by paying a membership to seat time fee. I believe the largest card room in America right now s the lodge in round rock. Obviously there is demand for it. Right now there are 50+ poker rooms listed on poker atlas in Texas.

However it is still illegal to play table games against the house, blackjack, pow gai, craps, roulette, etc.

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Hyperbole noted. I said you could gamble if you pay a seat fee. Poker is gambling. You repeated the same thing. I said nothing about individual games. Thanks for confirming.

The no one does it is more what Is as wrong as possible. The fact that you didn't understand the difference between poker and table games was also wrong. You said it was legal if you pay a seat fee. It is for one not the other. Again you were wrong. Or at the very least uninformed.

oproot said:

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It is infuriating and insulting we cannot play Texas Hold 'em...


In Texas

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Ol_Ag_02 said:

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GinMan said:

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…will benefit from this push

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Some of you are absolutely terrified of freedom and losing your ability to keep others from doing things you don't like.

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I am not at all terrified of freedom or losing my ability to keep others from doing basically anything.

I am terrified of my MIL and my SIL living in my house because they throw away their retirement check and paycheck every week in a Texas casino. I think that is a valid concern.

As such, for my own selfish reasons, I hope casino gambling stays to Vegas, Atlantic City, and wherever the war hoops can do it.

JaxDad said:

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I'm no economist or accountant but every time I've been to Louisiana casinos about half of the license plates and almost all the buses in the parking lots are Texas. People that want to gamble (and all the other appeals of casinos) are going to do it. Why not keep those dollars in Texas? However it gets used the money stays home.

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We are literally our own country like Florida or CA or NY. I am not disagreeing with you per se but we need to be realistic. We have the largest populations of poor people and they flock to gambling. That is fact.

We need to be 100% onboard with the downside of it. We're not Kansas or Washington.

JaxDad said:

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I'm no economist or accountant but every time I've been to Louisiana casinos about half of the license plates and almost all the buses in the parking lots are Texas. People that want to gamble (and all the other appeals of casinos) are going to do it. Why not keep those dollars in Texas? However it gets used the money stays home.

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That might make sense if the owners were in Texas and invested their money here. If the casinos are owned by large, national corporations, then I'm not sure how that helps keep the money in Texas other than what goes to the payroll and local operating expenses.

Martin Cash said:

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Let me see if I understand this: There are a lot of stupid Texans who like to throw their money away in casinos. so we should make it more convenient for them, and the state should take a slice of their stupidly lost money in the process?

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There are a lot of stupid Texans that throw their money away on Aggie football and got to see them go 5-7 this year. Wanna outlaw that too?

Gambling is just another form of entertainment, be it going to a show, a dinner experience, a football game, or diddling yourself. The government shouldn't be deciding how people choose to entertain themselves.

YouBet said:

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Not too long ago I learned that you can gamble in Texas. It's legal. You just have to pay a seat fee to sit down and do it. I guess there isn't enough demand to date for someone to open one and get enough traffic from people who are willing to pay the seat fee before being dealt some cards?

The only reason I know this is because I know a guy who is in the process of opening a casino in DFW area. I was shocked by this as I had never heard of this. I thought it was just straight illegal but it's not. Called my best friend who gambles for a living and has played in the WSOP and he confirmed it's absolutely legal via the seat fee policy.

It's just that no one does it.

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Prime Social on Westheimer in Houston has been very successful for a long time. You should go try it.

Out of state casinos make huge donations to Tx politicians to continue keeping casinos out of Texas. Tx politics is pretty simple. Just grease the right Tx house and senate members to get what you want or don't want.

I am guessing the "we know what's best for us" crowd is very young, likely with young children or no children at all, and from families that haven't been harmed by family members who are addicts.

Addiction is NOT a victimless crime, and the family members of addicts are held hostage. Gambling, drinking, smoking, weed, and drug use have all been banned for this reason at one time or another for this reason, and not by "moral due goodness trying to limit personal liberty".

People with families and responsibilities vote, and things that tend to destroy families and ruin lives get pushed away. We have conceded alcohol, but there are MANY people whose lives have been negatively impacted by alcoholic parents or children who would be willing to ban it, not on moral principle but to drive it away from their life.

The moral social net to support those who will be gambling, but cannot afford it, and their families, better be factored into all of the perceived benefits. Gambling addictIon is real and highly destructive.

Urban Ag said:

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Ol_Ag_02 said:

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GinMan said:

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…will benefit from this push

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Some of you are absolutely terrified of freedom and losing your ability to keep others from doing things you don't like.

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I am not at all terrified of freedom or losing my ability to keep others from doing basically anything.

I am terrified of my MIL and my SIL living in my house because they throw away their retirement check and paycheck every week in a Texas casino. I think that is a valid concern.

As such, for my own selfish reasons, I hope casino gambling stays to Vegas, Atlantic City, and wherever the war hoops can do it.

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You're not concerned about losing your ability to prevent others from gambling, but yet you want to prevent those living in your house from gambling.

Your inability to control your own house without government help isn't my concern.

AgGrad99 said:

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Viper16 said:

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I'm for it........especially if it lowers property taxes!!

"Funding for Education

Revenue raised from these new sites could provide funding for public education and public higher education, for the arts as well as for public safety and law enforcement."

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I dont care if it happens either way...but they said the EXACT same thing about the lottery.

It wont lower property taxes.

They're just using that verbiage to get it passed. 'do it for the kids' and all...

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Ding, ding, ding!

That's not a reason to ban something

PAID FOR BY LAS VEGAS SANDS CORP.

I was told this group has 60 paid lobbyists at the Capitol this session.

Yep, they know how profitable it is to get it passed.

Quit letting them live in your house

I would like to understand why certain people want alcohol, weed, gambling banned but are pro "freedom"

jja79 said:

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Quit letting them live in your house

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They don't live in my house and you and 02 are complete dullards.

It was a jest post. Seriously, stop devaluing my degree and find a sense of humor.

I guess people like to pay the stupid tax aka the I can't do math tax but they're all free to do do if they wish. Even I indulge in a lottery ticket now and then because $1-2 is actually not that a costly way to daydream some big "what if" dreams for a couple of days until the inevitable happens, if done in moderation.

The interesting thing about gambling is you can do it without putting by money at risk, but everyone likes the idea they are special and might profit greatly from random good fortune and that is exciting, and many are willing to take substantial losses to indulge that. It is compulsive for some.

I'm not really sure it is a legitimate argument that there is any substantial benefit to the public, except of course the exercise of individual freedom to self indulge. I don't think revenues on taxation will be substantial and the financial benefit will be narrow. We already have a huge unskilled labor shortage, and casino work is notoriously low paying.

Pooh-ah95_ESL said:

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I am guessing the "we know what's best for us" crowd is very young, likely with young children or no children at all, and from families that haven't been harmed by family members who are addicts.

Addiction is NOT a victimless crime, and the family members of addicts are held hostage. Gambling, drinking, smoking, weed, and drug use have all been banned for this reason at one time or another for this reason, and not by "moral due goodness trying to limit personal liberty".

People with families and responsibilities vote, and things that tend to destroy families and ruin lives get pushed away. We have conceded alcohol, but there are MANY people whose lives have been negatively impacted by alcoholic parents or children who would be willing to ban it, not on moral principle but to drive it away from their life.

The moral social net to support those who will be gambling, but cannot afford it, and their families, better be factored into all of the perceived benefits. Gambling addictIon is real and highly destructive.

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Yup, there used to be a standard in society but I fear the 'freedom for anything' mantra is really just a mask for - I really don't care anymore so just do whatever you want. Freedom is just mask for lax citizenship nowadays. Everybody here preaches 'freedom to have destructive habits' but also went right along with the lockdowns and nonsense of COVID - an absolute slap in the face of supposed freedoms. Nobody really cares about society.

I like to gamble but I also don't need casinos everywhere in this country. That being said, don't worry folks, everything is going to be legalized here soon enough.

Texas legalizing gambling will not generate tourism. Heck, it barely does in Atlantic City, if at all. If you are out of state and traveling to gamble, you are headed to Las Vegas or maybe New Orleans. Deadwood is the best case scenario.

Second, most casinos outside of the aforementioned areas draw their gamblers from something like a 90-135 mile radius. Legalizing gambling in Texas moves the booming I-35 corridor within range. This is why gaming corporations are lobbying for gambling. Legalizing it in Texas is bad for single location casino companies. It's good for companies with many casinos.

So with the understanding that Texas casinos are for Texans, I don't see how this is a net economic benefit. Low paying jobs with local revenue and profits going to national companies does not appear a winning formula. Add in that the taxpayer is stuck with all the social costs, and the projections of this being an economic boom strikes me as the "broken window fallacy".

So I'm for you gambling if you want, but I'm really against underwriting that gambling. I would change my mind if truly third party studies were done showing that somehow we won't be stuck with the bill. If it doesn't have .edu in it, I don't trust it at this point. (I'm not blindly trusting .edu either, but it's a start.). In the meantime, if you are too poor to fly to Vegas, you are too poor to gamble.

dead said:

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Think of all the money going to OK and LA courtesy of Texans

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Go to any casino in Louisiana and 70%+ of the vehicles in the parking lots will have Texas license plates.