High-Rollers: The Gambling Industry and Illinois Politicians

February 3, 1999

Last month pro-gambling interests lost their bid to expand gaming in Illinois. However, by the record amounts of gambling money flowing to state legislators, no one should cash in their chips yet. Gambling interests gave an estimated $1.7 million to Illinois legislators in '97-'98, topping the '95-'96 record of $1.42 million. (See graph)

Source: Kent Redfield, Univ. of Illinois at Springfield. About the data.

This amount of lobbying means it is just a matter of time before another expansion bill comes before the Capitol. Lobbying funds come from three competing gambling interests: riverboat owners, horse racing interests, and newcomers who want a piece of the action. Most of the money goes to just five politicians: Governor George Ryan and legislative leaders Michael Madigan, Emil Jones, Lee Daniels , and James "Pate" Philip. (See table)

Source: Kent Redfield, University of Illinois at Springfield. About the data.

Who Wants What?

Obviously, everyone wants the money. Riverboat operators want to keep their current share of the gambling money. Communities without gambling want casinos so revenue can flow into their communities. Gambling companies outside of Illinois want in. And legislators want the tax revenue wherever it can be found. Riverboat taxes put over $183 million into the state treasury in 1997. (Source: Chicago Tribune, 5/20/98)

Current riverboat owners shell out big bucks. The Elgin Riverboat Resort & Casino gave a total of $75,500 in '97-'98 to state politicians, including $40,000 to the Democratic Party of Illinois and its chair, Michael Madigan. In the same period, Players Riverboat Casino cut checks for $5,200 to George Ryan's campaign. Empress River Casino dropped over a quarter million dollars; almost half of this went to Ryan and Madigan. Hollywood Casino Aurora gave 79,930, with $21,400 going to House Republican leader Lee Daniels. Harrah's added another $93,850, spreading it evenly among Ryan and the four leaders.

What do riverboat owners want? To keep out the competition. Thus, current riverboat owners oppose additional licenses. Some, however, would like to move their boats to more profitable locations, like Cook County; a sweetener like this might quell riverboat opposition to an expansion deal.

Another person who doesn't want to see more casinos is Richard Duchossois. Duchossois owns Arlington National Racecourse and could do without the competition. He would, however, like to add slot machines and his own riverboat casino to his racecourse. Duchossois, his family, and affiliated companies gave a whopping $551,870 to state politicians in '97-'98.

Governor Edgar made reopening Arlington Racetrack his lame duck project. The track closed last season amid financial problems. Duchossois blames the track's failure on an unfair tax system--racetracks pay higher taxes than casinos. Edgar proposed moving a riverboat license to Cook County and using some of the tax revenue to subsidize Arlington Racetrack. That's right, Edgar wanted to subsidize horse racing with casino money. The idea will likely return with the new legislature.

Communities without gambling also send huge checks to Illinois legislators. Rosemont Mayor Donald Stephens gave $137,100 to state politicians in '97-'98, with over $40,000 going to Ryan's campaign. Rosemont is not the only community with lobbying power and funds. The Lake County Riverboat Project (LCRP) has opened its pocketbook to various campaigns. In '97-'98, the LCRP gave $20,000 to Ryan and $9,550 to Lee Daniels.

Conclusion

Does campaign money dominate Illinois politics? In looking at the influence of gambling industry contributions, whether gaming is expanded or not is not the only issue. This industry has shown that heavy contributions allow a narrow interest to high-jack the legislative agenda for weeks at a time. Who gets the losing hand? The public, whose issues and interests never make it to the table.