It appears that Pennsylvania’s residents do not want part of the tax revenue collected from casinos to go to the horse racing sector. Franklin & Marshall College’s Center for Opinion Research recently conducted a poll. The poll results show eight out of ten residents in Pennsylvania are of the opinion that the horse racing industry should not be supported with tax revenue from slot machines.
There are 15 commercial casinos in Pennsylvania. These casinos are subject to a 54 percent tax on their overall gaming revenue collected from slot games. Eleven percent of this tax revenue goes to the Pennsylvania horse Race sector.
This is a fund that the Horse Race Industry uses to finance drug testing, breeder incentives, race purses, and enforce regulations. The fund is usually around $250 million per year, and respondents think this money should finance something else.
Eighty-three percent of respondents from a poll conducted by Franklin & Marshall College’s Center for Opinion Research said the resources should go to other things. Ten percent were comfortable with 11 percent of collected tax going to the Horse Race Industry. Another 7 percent were not sure about the whole thing.
The executive director of education voters of Pennsylvania, Susan, encouraged the poll. Susan wanted to know taxpayers’ opinions on their money funding horse racing instead of other vital sectors.
According to Susan, better needs in the country could be supported by the money funding the Horse Race Industry. She said it was challenging to warrant the necessity of continued funding of the Horse Race Industry.
The poll also asked education-specific questions. Eighty-two percent of the respondents agreed that the funds should be reallocated to education scholarships. On the other hand, 14 percent disagreed.
Another Opinion
Although 83 percent were against casino revenue tax going to the Horse Race Industry, some residents believe the poll was flawed. Pete Peterson of the Equine Coalition in Pennsylvania said that residents wanted to support horse racing. Pete claimed Franklin & Marshall’s poll was biased.
According to Peterson, third parties can fund Franklin & Marshall to conduct a poll directly in a certain way. He told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that he had experienced such situations. Peterson said some poll questions could be loaded.
One of the questions termed as reloaded in the poll would be: “Would you continue to support the use of state tax revenues to support the horse racing industry if you learned that about 1,400 horses have died in the past ten years as a result of racing-related injuries?” Fifty-one percent of those who answered the question answered “Yes,” while 45 percent said “No.”
The Governor Supports the 83 Percent Respondent
Earlier this year, Governor Tom Wolf (D) indicated it was appropriate to redirect money given to horsemen. The governor is serving his last term and wants to do something different with over $240 million the Horse Race Industry is meant to receive.
Tom wants the funds to support students joining the school to pursue degrees in health care and education. Wolf declared that it was better to invest in the state’s kids instead of horses. Wolf is continually supporting that the Nelly Bly Tuition Program should be receiving the tax money.
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