Casinos are easy target for spending solons

Now that gambling is entrenched in Missouri, legislators looking for ways to spend even more money are taking a good look at the state's prosperous casinos. The 11 casinos on or near Missouri's two major rivers showed 18 percent increases in revenue (what's left over after payouts to gamblers) during February.

What a change since the days when riverboat gambling was first introduced in the Show Me State. In the beginning, all sorts of rules and regulations applied to riverboats. They had to float. They had to cruise. They had to limit a gambler's time spent on a boat. Most of the requirements designed to make gambling look like a visit to a steamboat theme park have fallen by the wayside. Now, except for their location next to the Missouri River or Mississippi River, the state's gambling houses look like casinos you might find anywhere in the country or the world.

From all indications, gamblers aren't affected much by economic tides. And because they are such steady revenue producers, they also look like good targets for legislators who want easy fixes to plans for increased state spending at a pace faster than the growth of state revenue.

A bill to raise $81.5 million for local school districts by increasing both casino boarding fees and the state's take of casino receipts sailed easily through the Missouri House. Some opponents grumbled about the state's growing reliance on gambling to fund key programs, but they were decidedly in the minority.

If any legislators believe increasing casino entry fees by 50 percent (to $3 from $2) has merit because it might deter gambling in the long run, they are sadly and obviously mistaken. In the first place, the entry fee is so low, even at the proposed $3, that it is hardly a nip in the wallets of gamblers who stand to lose up to $500 during each trip to a casino. Indeed, the state could probably double or quadruple the entry fees without any loss in customers. And there are probably some legislators who are keeping that fact filed away as it becomes harder and harder to justify bigger and bigger state budgets while the state's revenue growth takes a breather.

Thanks to the state lottery, bingo and casinos, Missouri's funding for local school districts is at an all-time high. It would be hard to find many school administrators who pooh-pooh gambling as a source of revenue. It's hard enough to get local voters to approve school taxes or bond issues, and the thought of losing gambling proceeds is anathema to school officials.

It's enough to make some Missourians wonder if schools should offer courses on blackjack strategy or incorporate slot-machine odds into math courses. After all, many of these students will one day be losing their hard-earned cash too, all for the sake of public education.