Miss. casinos hurt by soft economy, fuel prices

Jack Elliott Jr

Wednesday, May 23, 2001 | 10:54 a.m.

JACKSON, Miss. -- Paying for heat and gas is keeping patrons from spending money in casinos, industry officials say. Business layoffs also contributed to casino revenues falling in April.

That analysis is reflected in new reports that show casino revenue dropped about 9 percent from March.

The 30 state-regulated casinos brought in $222.2 million in April. That compares with $218.3 million in the same month last year, and $243.2 in March, according to new figures from the state Tax Commission.

Industry officials also say that from year-to-year, since 1999, overall revenues have climbed.

John Osborne, vice president and general manager of the Hollywood Casino in Tunica, said Monday that people were strapped with larger heating bills during the winter and higher gasoline prices heading into the summer vacation season. He said industry and small company layoffs have also been a factor.

"When you start adding those up, one of the first things you cut out is those entertainment dollars. When you start talking about entertainment dollars, that's where the gaming industry fits in," Osborne said.

Osborne said the industry also had one less weekend day in April than March and weekends attract more customers.

Andy Bourland, with the Mississippi Gaming Association, said there is now a direct correlation between the downturn in the economy and gaming revenue statewide.

"What you are seeing is that the Mississippi market, as a regional market, is dependent on repeat business. Many of our patrons who have gone two or three times may have reduced that to once or twice. That has a significant impact on the overall revenue numbers," Bourland said.

Bourland said the revenue figures show that for the first four months of 2001, revenue overall is up about 1 percent statewide from 2000. He said the coastal counties have shown a revenue increase of about 5.7 percent compared to last year while the river counties have experienced a drop of about 1 percent between the first four months of 2001 and 2000.

"There is a stability in the Mississippi market. There is not a good deal of expansion. That's why the different regions are looking at joint marketing efforts. That is the most important thing for us to attend to," Bourland said.

The 12 casinos on the coast reported revenue of $94.9 million in April compared with $97.4 million in March and $89.8 million in April 2000.

In Tunica and the river counties, casinos took in $127.2 million last month and $145.7 million in March. In April 2000, they took in $128.5 million.

So far this year, gross casino revenue totals $920.9 million, including $385.2 million from the coast casinos and $535.6 million from gaming houses along the Mississippi River.

Tax Commission figures also showed total tax collections from casinos through 10 months of the fiscal year have totaled $263.1 million, with local governments receiving $87.2 million and the state $132.9 million. The remainder goes into a casino road and bond fund.