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Amendment 50
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Amendment 50, known as the Limited Gaming Initiative, aims to allow the voters of Central City, Blackhawk and Cripple Creek to vote on whether to extend casino hours in those cities, add roulette and craps games, and extend the current $5 bet limit to $100. There is also a provision in the amendment that would end the Colorado Limited Gaming Control Commission's ability to raise the tax rate on casinos (currently 20%, the commission can raise the rate to as high as 40%) and instead put any proposed tax increase on the casinos to a statewide vote.
The vote in the gambling cities would be a foregone conclusion, so essentially, Amendment 50 is a vote on all of the above issues. What does Colorado get in return? Roughly 15% of the new revenues (or 78% of what the state collects) would go to student financial aid and classroom instruction at community colleges.
Say Yes on 50, the group campaigning for the measure, argues that revenues in Colorado gaming towns are down substantially, and that the $5 limit is largely responsible. Coloradans for Community Colleges also back the measure.
The argument against Amendment 50 is led by Keep Vegas Out, a group started by Denver lawyer Jon Anderson. Anderson's central point is that the amendment simply asks for too much in one vote - and he's right.
Anyone who has ever been to the mountain casinos would agree that the $5 bet limit makes for some very boring blackjack. The limit should be increased. And community colleges should get more money from the state, and the gaming industry could certainly afford it. But when gambling industry giants Ameristar and Isle of Capri fund an amendment like this in our state, attempting to increase the bet limit by a factor of 20, while at the same time making it harder for the state to raise taxes on them, it feels like a hustle, and these people are pretty damn good at that.
Vote this thing down and make them come back next year with something better.
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