Summary Box: Mississippi Legislature passes onshore casino bill

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Monday, Oct. 3, 2005 | 11:44 a.m.

THE DEAL: Move Mississippi coastal casinos onto dry land. Mississippi legalized casinos in 1990, but restricted them to barges on either the Gulf of Mexico or the Mississippi River.

THE DEALERS: Republican Gov. Haley Bourbor and coastal legislators pushed for the move as a safety measure and to ensure casino companies would rebuild following Hurricane Katrina.

THE WINNERS: The 13 coastal gambling houses employed about 14,000 people before the hurricane struck Aug. 29. They generated about $500,000 a day in state and local taxes. Thousands more people had jobs supplying goods or services to casinos.

THE LOSERS: Gambling opponents, including those who objected on religious grounds.