Legislators talk taxes as session nears end

Thursday, June 26, 1997 | 11:49 a.m.

AB419 passed on a 5-2 vote Wednesday and will move to the Senate floor for a final decision - and a few parting shots from those who think casinos don't warrant tax relief.

AB419 allows casinos to deduct losses if a win is paid to a gambler who used promotional tokens. That means casinos would report less income, and therefore pay a smaller tax bill.

Sen. Valerie Wiener, D-Las Vegas, who voted against AB419, said she couldn't justify lower casino taxes in light of expected sales and property tax hikes.

Casinos are spearheading a plan to raise sales taxes in Clark County a quarter-cent for a $3 billion water and sewer expansion, and higher property taxes may remain frozen under a different plan to pay for school construction.

Sen. Dina Titus, D-Las Vegas, also voted against AB419, saying, "I'm not going to vote to give gaming a $2 million-a-year tax break."

Gambling lobbyists argued that the state could actually reap larger tax returns by allowing casinos to deduct those losses.

The theory is that promotional chips attract high-rollers who end up spending huge sums, which contribute to higher tax revenue for the state.

Casino lobbyist Harvey Whittemore said Caesars Palace gave one gambler $50,000 in promotional chips, and the gambler went on to lose $20 million.

Whittemore said some casinos would have to stop giving away promotional chips if they couldn't deduct the losses. Without that as a marketing tool, casinos could suffer, he said.

Gaming Control Board Chairman Bill Bible argued that casinos have not claimed these deductions in past years and that the state would lose tax revenue by allowing it to happen now.

AB419 started out as a Control Board bill to block casinos from claiming the deductions, but gaming lobbyists rewrote the measure.