Compromise fails before it really starts

Kevin McGill

Sunday, June 4, 2000 | 12:40 p.m.

BATON ROUGE, La. - A compromise to raise riverboat casino taxes fell apart before it started Sunday, leaving in the air the fate of a $13.8 billion operating budget that is $250 million in the hole.

The six members of a House-Senate conference committee apparently had talked informally about a compromise on the riverboat tax before the meeting.

As the meeting started, Rep. Ronnie Johns, R-Sulphur, announced that no vote would be taken because the committee needed more time - perhaps a day or so.

Conference committee meetings on two other tax bills - one on alcohol and the other on tobacco - were scheduled later in the day.

The entire package is needed to fill the budget hole.

The Senate Sunday was waiting for the outcome of the three conference committees and possible House action on the committee compromises before beginning debate on the budget.

The House sent the budget to the Senate with even a larger hole and was reluctant to pass enough taxes that would erase the shortfall, deciding to pass the sin tax bills that would raise a total of $86 million.

The Senate added greatly to the tax bills, bringing the total of the three to more than $200 million. The House rejected the Senate changes and the conference committees were formed.

Johns, as author of the riverboat bill, was chairman of his conference committee and indicated he was not able to go much above the 3 percent tax increase passed by the House.

The casino industry supported Johns' bill because the casinos got a sweet deal in the process. The bill also called for the cruising boats to go dockside. Also, any boat that invested from $200 million to $250 million in its facilities would not have to pay the extra tax.

The Senate rejected the dockside idea and the investment credit. In addition, the Senate raised the tax increase to 8 percent.

"We cannot balance the budget on the backs of just one industry," said Johns.

Sen. Robert Barham, D-Oak Ridge, a committee member, said his own bottom line was to raise enough money to assure health care programs for the poor and supplemental pay for local fire and police personnel are funded.

The committee adjourned until further notice.

The session must end Wednesday evening.