Saint Landry Parish of Louisiana: Viva la slots racetrack!
St. Landry Parish of Louisiana has been collecting great sums of money from slots taxes payed by the Evangeline Downs Racetrack and Casino, a local gaming venue. Parish President Don Menard was reported as saying that the St. Landry government allocates 100% of the received slots money to Fund 21, the road and bridge fund dedicated to road maintenance.
Under Louisiana state law, the Parish is entitled to 4% of the net revenues generated by slot machines at the Evangeline Downs Racetrack and Casino. After paying a predetermined amount to different agencies and municipalities, the parish government gets to keep 55% of the amount left, which is then placed into the road fund. Numbers recently released by the Louisiana State Gaming Commission demonstrate that the slots tax revenue has exceeded $3.03 million.
The racino was established in Opelousas by Peninsula Gaming LLC in 2003. Evangeline Downs Racetrack and Casino General Manager Mike Howard said that there are several reasons behind the slots facility's financial growth and success, such as population increase due to hurricanes, hard team work of racino employees and company investment. Menard also said that he believes that revenues will grow even further, because the racino is a high-quality venue.
