Northwest Indiana Discussion

Thank you for the messsage Board.


Want to see how much your property taxes are or your neighbors?

http://in-lake-assessor.governmaxa.com/ ... B6761553A6








http://www.visitindiana.net/casino.html


http://www.in.gov/hoosierlottery/promot ... onus2a.gif

You would think that our taxes would be lower with all of the gaming revenue.

Lake

Category 1989 - 2003
Build Indiana Fund Local Projects $23,457,960
City and Town Police and Fire Pensions $28,249,866
Excise Tax Reduction $50,869,687
Indiana Technology Fund $6,598,395
Local Road and Street Account Distribution $3,621,519
Supplemental Tuition Support $29,080,529
Total $141,877,955





Build Indiana Fund investigated

Star investigation found illegal expenditures, little oversight



http://www.indystar.com/library/factfil ... eport.html

http://www.in.gov/gaming/reports/evalua ... rump-3.pdf


America’s Gambling Obsession:

A Financial Introspective



of the eCasino Gambling in the United States began in 1931 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Since that time, gambling has been legalized in 47 states, and is now a $58 billion per year industry. Additionally, 37 states now operate a state lottery. Casino gambling was legalized in Atlantic City, New Jersey in 1978. There are now 28 states with legalized Indian casinos. Commercial casinos took in $22.2 billion in revenue in 1999, the last year for which data were available, according to the umbrella organization American Gaming Association. The organization also reports 30% of U.S. households visited a casino in 1999, making an average of 5.4 trips a year. Online gambling is now a $2.2 billion per year industry.

The explosive growth of casinos has been fueled by the benefits received by entrepreneurs, corporations, and governments alike. Casino tax revenues fund social programs such as education and other state initiatives. Governments view gambling revenue as a device for reckoning income tax shortfalls. Native American, or Indian Reservation casinos, are betting heavily on gambling for their long term survival. Indian reservations are now projected to be a $9.6 billion per year industry growing three times as fast as competitors.

Changing technology, government regulations, and faltering world economies are all potential threats to the gaming industry. Four corporations command 70% of the U.S. Gambling revenue and are banking on innovations in the Casino Resort Hotel Industry to protect them from any long-term harm in an economic downturn. Vices such as drinking, smoking, and gambling are usually safe despite the condition conomy.




The Macroeconomic Benefits of Gambling



Gambling provides tremendous revenues to state and local governments while creating jobs in distressed areas. Indian casinos have channeled a staggering amount of money to some of America’s most wretched places…” (ref. #1 Anonymous). With proper regulation, gambling has been proven to redistribute wealth to socially beneficial programs; not dissimilar to a tax. The problem is that gambling has long been seen as a morally indefensible vice and as such does not often receive intelligent debate in its approval, application, and implementation.

Gambling initiatives have been used in places such as Gary, Indiana, and most recently Detroit, Michigan to revitalize economically depressed economies. Casino expansion brings construction jobs, service sector jobs, and most importantly tax revenue. Casinos attract “budget-conscious planners” that bring large amounts of convention money to town (ref. #6 Cummings). Similarly, casinos often attract leisure travelers and weekend entertainment aficionados looking to relieve themselves of disposable income.

Another offshoot of the Casino boom is the city rejuvenation effort that can often follow. If casinos are successful in cleaning-up once left-for-dead cities, office, retail, and residential development can’t be far behind. Detroit, Michigan is a prime example as city planners look to pick up where the automobile industry left off twenty-five years ago. Casinos cannot be credited revitalizing a city, but they are certainly a seed that plays an instrumental role in the process.


Donald Trump Just got Fired



Trump files for $500M




NEW LONDON, Connecticut -- Donald Trump got fired. Now he's asking for $500 million US. The real estate mogul and television star is offering to drop his breach of contract lawsuit against the Eastern Pequot tribe and the casino investors who replaced him in exchange for a half a billion dollars.

"The figure was arrived at very carefully by people in the Trump organization who determined what likely income would have been generated had the Trump organization gone forward with the Eastern Pequot casino," Trump's lawyer, Robert Reardon, told the Day of New London.

The Eastern Pequots' lawyer, however, says the tribe is not interested.

"I think a more appropriate valuation is the one he (Trump) put in his bankruptcy filing, which is zero," lawyer Robert Tobin said.

Trump invested more than $10 million through one of his subsidiary companies in an effort to help a faction of the tribe open a casino.

Assets for the subsidiary are listed as zero in last month's Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing by Trump Hotels & Casino Resorts Inc.



U. S. Steel Withdraws Damage Claim Against Miller Citizens Corporation

Urges Industry, Government And Citizens to Work Together to Solve Lake County Tax Problems

GARY, Ind., Aug. 6 /PRNewswire/ -- United States Steel Corporation

announced today that it has withdrawn its request to be compensated by the Miller Citizens Corporation (MCC) for legal fees incurred defending against a filing by the MCC to oppose the proposed tax settlement between the company, Lake County and the state of Indiana. The Indiana Tax Court recently held that MCC had no right to intervene and that the MCC motion was not timely filed.

Commenting on the company's decision, U. S. Steel Gary Works General Manager George Babcoke said, "While we were deeply offended by certain language in the brief, which unnecessarily degraded U. S. Steel and our employees, the citizens of Lake County and its local governments, we are withdrawing our request for damages at the urging of local government officials and because we want to continue to focus on the important issues. It is not our intent to do anything that would financially impact individual homeowners.

"We have met with the leadership of the MCC several times and continue to offer to meet with all members of the MCC. All constituents - including the citizens of Miller - should work together to find workable solutions to the tax problem, which not only affects the citizens of Northwest Indiana, but which has also discouraged investment in the area and poses a significant threat to the area's future economic vitality."

U. S. Steel believes that the settlement agreement is in the best interest of all parties and significantly benefits Northwest Indiana. Under that agreement, Lake County will receive $53 million - $44 million from U. S. Steel and the remainder from the state of Indiana. U. S. Steel has also agreed to invest no less than $150 million in our Lake County operations over a period of four years and to work with the City of Gary to redevelop and donate to the city approximately 200 acres of lakeshore land on the west end of the plant. Under the settlement U. S. Steel also will relinquish legitimate tax refund claims totaling $65 million for prior years 1994 to 1996 and 1999.

"Gary Works remains the most highly taxed of all of U. S. Steel's facilities and among our competitors on a per-ton-of-steel basis," added Babcoke. "Steelmaking is a cyclical business, and if we don't take steps to reduce costs and improve productivity during the good times, we will not be prepared to weather the bad times.

"Thousands of U. S. Steel employees and retirees make their homes in Lake County. These are hardworking men and women who want to see a bright future for their families. We should all be working together to achieve that brighter future. To do so, we must find a common ground where industry, employees, government and citizens can work together to control costs, reduce taxes and revitalize our community. It's the only hope for a prosperous future for all of Northwest Indiana."


Please send your ideas for Hoosier Homeowner Property Tax Relief to taxless@watchdogindiana.org.

Tough Question!

I would have liked to have voted for both "The question should be put on the ballot for next election let the voters decide" and "The taxes will still go through the roof in about 10 years if a cap is not put on government spending."

We should have more spending put up for a taxpayer vote, especially the bigger ticket items and spending is out of control and needs to be capped.