Wednesday, July 05, 2006

As reported by the Louisville Courier-Journal: "One little-noticed detail of
the deal to bring a Honda assembly plant to Greensburg could have
significant implications for Harrison County and other places that get money
from riverboat casinos. "The city of Lawrenceburg, home of the Argosy
Casino, has agreed to provide $10 million of its gambling proceeds toward
the $100 million in infrastructure improvements that will be made to benefit
the plant and future economic growth in the region. "This was Gov. Mitch
Daniels' idea and it's a move he hopes will quiet criticism that casino
communities -- and Lawrenceburg in particular -- are reaping too much
benefit from their gambling boats. ".Last year, some Republicans in the
House and Senate drew up plans to redistribute some of the money that local
communities receive from the casino. ".But Lawrenceburg, which has the
biggest revenue casino and by far the most lucrative of these development
agreements, has not in the past shared its money. That caused big problems
at the General Assembly, where lawmakers from districts with no casino and
no source of ready cash were prepared to nab some for either the state
budget or their own communities."