Indiana gaming tax revenue hit a nine-year high in the recently completed 2021-22 fiscal year, but casino revenues shrank for the third consecutive month in June.
Tax Revenue With A 9-year High
The state collected $689 million in taxes from casinos last year, an 18.2% increase from 2020-21. This is the highest return for the state in nine years. This is also the 1st time in four years that Indiana breached the $600-million mark in total gaming taxes.
Twelve licensed commercial casinos have reported total taxable adjusted gross receipts of $188.7 and remitted $60.1 million in wagering taxes for the month of June and a total of $606.1 million in wagering tax for the current year.
Hard Rock Northern Indiana, A land-based casino based in Gary led all with a $31.4 million in AGR for the month, followed by Horseshoe Hammond, another Northwest Indiana venue, with an AGR of $28.3 million while Horseshoe Indianapolis, a racino in Shelbyville, comes up with $23 million, and Caesars Southern Indiana reported $19.6 million AGR.
Casino Revenue Continuous To Decline
Despite having great tax revenue, there is still something to be resolved in Indiana as casino revenues have been falling since March and were down 2.5% from May to June. Casinos have taken a bit of a beating this month, with March’s $235.2 million figure down 16% from last month’s $278.7 million count.
One of the main factors that drive the continuous decline in casino revenues is the rise of inflation in the US. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, the recorded annual inflation rate ballooned to 9.1% for June. This is something that the US economy has not experienced in more than 40 years and the highest recorded since November 1981.
With the increase in inflation, people tend to spend less on non-essential items such as gambling. According to SpendingPulse, gasoline and convenience items rose by 55.7% in June compared to pre-pandemic June 2019 statistics. Additionally, a 24.8% grocery spending increase was also reported over the same timeframe. This leaves less money for people to gamble with, which in turn causes casino revenue to decline. The decline is expected to continue if inflation remains on its current level.
