Bill Text: TX HCR127 | 2013-2014 | 83rd Legislature | Introduced

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Bill Title: Requesting the lieutenant governor and the speaker of the house of representatives to create a joint interim committee to study the gaming industry in Texas.

Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2013-05-24 - Referred to Licensing & Administrative Procedures [HCR127 Detail]

Download: Texas-2013-HCR127-Introduced.html

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83R28748 BPG-D
By: Menendez H.C.R. No. 127

CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, The diversity of the Texas economy helps the state
weather downturns in the business environment at the national
level, yet communities in the Lone Star State continue to seek ways
to ensure that they have sufficient resources to provide necessary
services; studies indicate that the gaming industry has the
potential to bring billions of tax dollars into Texas while
creating jobs and boosting local economies; and
WHEREAS, Estimates of Texans' annual discretionary spending
for gaming range from $4 billion to $6 billion, but the tax dollars
generated currently go to Louisiana, Oklahoma, New Mexico, and
other states with highly developed gaming industries; and
WHEREAS, Tax revenues that Texas could gain from gaming
exceed $1 billion annually, factoring in the effects of the
construction of destination resort casinos, the licensing of
gambling at the state's Indian reservations, and the installation
of casino-style gaming at existing licensed horse and greyhound
racetracks; and
WHEREAS, Texas remains fiscally conservative, with a
pro-business regulatory and tax system that encourages job growth,
but in order to produce the well-educated workforce required to
compete in an increasingly global economy, the state must continue
to invest in our public education system; should Texas be required
to increase its funding of public schools, one of the options that
must be given consideration by the legislature is the recapture of
revenue leaving our state because of our current prohibition on
gaming; and
WHEREAS, Communities with racetracks are presently losing
business to other states where racetracks offer consumers
alternative gaming opportunities, and the state's racehorse
industry is losing business to competitors in states where income
from casino gaming at racetrack facilities supports breeding
programs and higher purses; and
WHEREAS, Development of destination resort casinos would
exert an economic stimulus in surrounding communities, initially
through construction employment and later through employment not
only at the casinos but also in the retail, restaurant, recreation,
convention, and other tourist businesses that would soon flourish;
and
WHEREAS, In order to maximize the economic benefits of the
gaming industry to the state and to local communities, Texas must
develop a comprehensive and coherent strategy that considers such
aspects as the areas of the state that would be most suitable for
specific types of gaming facilities, the types of gaming that would
be of economic benefit to individual communities, and the types of
gaming that would provide maximum financial benefit to the state;
and
WHEREAS, The vast potential for new tax revenue streams and
economic stimulus demands a careful evaluation of the business
environments in individual communities and of the direct and
indirect benefits of the gaming industry to those communities and
to the state; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the 83rd Legislature of the State of Texas
hereby respectfully request the lieutenant governor and the speaker
of the house of representatives to create a joint interim committee
to study the gaming industry in Texas and its potential direct and
indirect economic impact on specific markets and on the state as a
whole; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That any study or report on the gaming industry
expansion into Texas include a cost-benefit analysis that considers
both the social and economic costs related to the expansion of
casino-style gambling, the effect on existing sales tax revenue,
and the effect on Texas lottery sales, as well as an analysis of the
tax rates on dollars wagered in the casino business model and the
effect on the existing local economies and family-friendly tourism;
and, be it further
RESOLVED, That any study or report also include a complete
analysis of any agreements between the State of Texas and Indian
tribes regarding historic or real properties of Indian tribes in
the state, and that the analysis include but not be limited to a
complete review of Indian gaming expansion across the United
States, including current litigation and case law, and how Indian
historic and real properties have been leveraged to expand casino
gaming into areas that had not been previously considered Indian
land; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That the committee's proceedings and operations be
governed by such general rules and policies for joint interim
committees as the 83rd Legislature may adopt; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That the committee submit a full report, including
findings and recommendations, to the 84th Texas Legislature when it
convenes in January 2015.