Page 100 - South Mississippi Living - August, 2023

CSASINO story by Lori Beth Susman photo by Snaparazzi
casinos, with properties found in for improvements to state roads and Biloxi, Gulfport, D’Iberville and bridges.
the Bay St. Louis/Waveland area. As a former Biloxi mayor used to Looking at it from a statewide say when asked where the casino
ome say casino gaming is all about numbers, and in Mississippi, the numbers tell the story. Two years ago,
2021 was a year that saw Gulf Coast casinos setting an all-time record
of $1.6 billion in gross gaming revenue. While revenues were down slightly in 2022 compared to the record-setting numbers, they were still higher than revenue collected in previous years, indicating a strong upward trend for the state. The revenue numbers also show how important the gaming industry is to the Coast economy.
Ranking as the country’s fifth largest gaming market in
2022, the Mississippi Gulf Coast has
12 local
perspective, there is a total of 26 casinos. In 2022, Mississippi casinos together generated approximately $303.0 million in direct gaming
tax revenue. Of that total amount, approximately $164.4 million was distributed to Mississippi’s General Fund and is subject to annual appropriations to support various state budgetary needs, including education programs, transportation, local public safety programs and social welfare initiatives.
An additional $102.6 million worth of gaming tax revenue in 2022 was transferred to the cities that have casinos. A further $36 million was allocated to mainly be used to pay
money went, “Just look around.” New police departments, fire stations and schools are along the Coast having been built with money from the gaming industry, showing once again the value of the industry – and that is just in Biloxi.
Last year also marked the 30th anniversary of legalized gaming in Mississippi. Gulfport Mayor Billy Hewes, a Mississippi State Senator when gaming legislation passed in 1992, recalled the early days of the industry. “Looking back, we enjoyed a modest, but exciting start, with many small operators successfully testing the waters in this new market. It didn’t take long for the larger casino groups to recognize the potential of Mississippi’s new market – attracting both drive-in
100 | August 2023
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