Indiana slaps fine Caesars Entertainment

The US state of Indiana has slapped a fine of Caesars Entertainment Corp. US$1 million.  It is because the company has threatened to drop out from two mega horse racing casinos that were proposed. According to Caesars Entertainment, the company would drop the project “if the $50 million transfer fee related to Caesars’ purchase of Indiana’s two horse racing casinos wasn’t waived.” The company aims to negotiate with the State’s Gaming Commission to find a way to avoid both the fine and the fee.

 “…Caesars is now facing some very difficult decisions with regard to its proposed $90 million investment in southern Indiana,” Timothy Donovan, executive vice president, general counsel and chief regulatory and compliance officer for Caesars, wrote in an email to commission Executive Director Sara Gonso Tait. “We would prefer not pulling it from next week’s agenda, but at this point we may have no choice given the continued uncertainty surrounding the $50 million transfer fee.”

Caesars received authorisation from the IGC back in April to develop its 100,000-square-foot facility in Elizabeth and has just begun working on it. It’s a move that follows the passage of a piece of legislation by the Indiana General Assembly in 2015, which allowed riverboat casinos to be moved onto land.

Source: FocusGamingNews