March Slots Revenue Up 7 Percent Statewide; Down 6 Percent at Parx

The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) has reported that March slot machine revenue rose more than 7 percent over last March and produced the highest single month of revenue to the Commonwealth to date.

in Bensalem again had the highest slots revenue of the state’s 10 casinos with $34.3 million. That figure, however, was nearly 6 percent lower than its revenue in March 2010.

At Harrah's Chester Casino, March slots revenues were also down — nearly 10 percent at $25.6 million compared to more than $28.3 million last year. Philadelphia's Sugarhouse Casino wasn't opened this time last year. This year, its slots revenue was $14.9 million.

According to a PGCB  release, the play of slot machines at Pennsylvania casinos produced $214,926,433 in gross revenue in March 2011 compared to $200,162,919 during March 2010, an increase of 7.38 percent. 

That resulted in a return of $117,493,637 in taxes to Pennsylvania citizens in March of this year, an average of $3.8 million of taxes collected per day from the 55 percent assessment on slot machine revenue.

Approximately two-thirds of tax revenue is dedicated to general property tax reduction for Pennsylvania homeowners.  Last year, that reduction average $190 per household.  The remainder goes toward major economic development and tourism projects in Pennsylvania, the funding of road, safety and community improvement projects in the municipalities and counties that surround the casino locations, grants for local volunteer fire companies, and to Pennsylvania’s horse and harness racing industries.

Locally, Parx Casino slots revenue produced $18.75 million in taxes including $4 million for local governments from its 3,391 slot machines.