Similar to cannabis legalization, many U.S. states are legalizing casino gambling to generate tax revenue needed to fill gaps in their budgets and fuel local economies, both of which suffered from the COVID-19 pandemic-induced economic downturn.
The U.S. casino gaming industry’s total 2023 gross revenue totaled $101.4 billion, but its economic impact was $327.6 billion, according to research by the American Gaming Association (AGA). Casino gambling supported 1.8 million jobs and generated $52.7 billion in taxes and tribal revenue share.
The most recent states to legalize casino gambling were Virginia, Nebraska and Arkansas, bringing the total number of states with some form of casino gambling (tribal or commercial) to 44) plus Puerto Rico. These three states recently opened casinos and more are planned, and several states where it already is legal recently approved licenses to add more casinos, including New York and Illinois, which currently has 15 authorized casinos operating throughout the state, according to the Illinois Gaming Board.
John DeCree, CBRE head of research for Global Gaming, notes that state legislatures in North Carolina, Georgia and Texas also are considering legalizing casino gambling, but it often takes years to pass legislation legalizing gaming and then develop casinos.
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