Could Tax Cuts be Last Hope for Atlantic City?

With four casinos having closed this year in the struggling resort of Atlantic City two New Jersey senators may have come up with a plan to at least ease the tax burden on the remaining casinos. State Senate President Stephen M Sweeney and Senator James Whelan have put together a tax plan meaning that should revenues stay the same then casinos could collectively pay $150 Million for two years taxes, followed by $120 Million per year.

The tax amounts would be split between the remaining casinos, and although it's yet to be decided which casino would pay what, Kevin Ortzman, president of the Casino Association of New Jersey believes that the plan has potential and could be a real boost. He stated that, "Atlantic City needs this type of stabilization, which is critical to maintain the thousands of jobs and investment dollars in the market and enable further diversification to stimulate growth," and that's hard to argue with as unemployment in the Atlantic City area has spiralled due to the loss of so many casinos.

Once those first two years are up then the tax amount to be paid would be that $120 Million per year, split between all casinos, however that depends on revenue remaining between $2.2 and $2.6 Billion, and should that revenue fall below $2.2 Billion the tax amount payable would drop to $110 Million. There would be a downward sliding scale with the lowest projected amounts being anything below $1.4 Billion and $75 Million in tax would be due.

In other NJ news the Trump Taj Mahal is due to close its doors on December 11th and talks are ongoing in attempts to save the casino and the jobs of the 3,000 employees, with Carl Icahn hoping to make the purchase of the establishment.