The American Gaming Association, fed up with casinos paying higher tax rates than other businesses, is working on a new educational campaign to try to convince the public — and ultimately lawmakers — that casinos are a valuable contributor to local communities.
For many people, “sin taxes” might seem as anachronistic as bygone blue laws. But in most states, cigarettes, alcohol and casinos are still taxed heavily because such levies play well to both “tax-and-spend” liberals and religious conservatives.
The AGA hopes an argument based on free-market economics can trump those groups. As a gaming industry defender tells the Las Vegas Sun: “Realistic tax rates create more capital investment and jobs.”
Of course, if the AGA wants to talk investment and downplay sin, the current “What Happens in Vegas, Stays in Vegas” advertising campaign might not be the perfect complement to its efforts.
(Oh, and for you intellectual types, here’s an analysis of sin taxes by the Acton Institute for the Study of Religion and Liberty.)
