A program that gives money from state gambling profits to the 84 counties without a casino is now 20 years old.Iowa Gaming Association president Wes Ehrecke recently gave the annual report on the County Endowment Fund to the Racing and Gaming Commission. “This year was 1,830 grants for $11.6 million
A bill that would ban smoking in casinos passed out of the Iowa House Commerce Committee Tuesday.Bill HSB148 would force casinos to adhere to the Smokefree Air Act, a law that protects employees and patrons from secondhand smoke. Casinos are currently exempted from this act.Supporters of this bill c
Just like bars and restaurants in the state, smoking would be prohibited inside Iowa casinos under legislation that took a step forward Tuesday.House Study Bill 148 would repeal casinos’ exemption from Iowa’s smoke-free air law.The ban would apply to two state-licensed casinos in Northwest Iowa — th
Just like bars and restaurants in the state, smoking would be prohibited inside Iowa casinos under legislation that took a step forward Tuesday.House Study Bill 148 would repeal casinos’ exemption from Iowa’s smoke-free air law.Passed in 2008 to protect Iowans from secondhand smoke, the law prohibit
Iowa law enforcement would be able to charge a person who uses proxy betting or shares sports betting account access under a set of bills moving through the Iowa House and Senate.Companion legislation Senate Study Bill 1097 and House Study Bill 21 would allow law enforcement to arrest an individual
The former head of the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission will become the new CEO of Prairie Meadows Racetrack and Casino when longtime leader Gary Palmer retires at age 78 at the end of the year.Brian Ohorilko, hired away from Iowa gaming’s top regulatory agency in 2023 to become a senior vice presi
A proposed five-year moratorium on new state-licensed casinos in Iowa will not be passed into law, a key legislator said Tuesday, clearing the way for state regulators to decide later this week on a proposal for a new casino in Cedar Rapids.Iowa Sen. Ken Rozenboom, a Republican from Oskaloosa, annou
A moratorium bill potentially banning new gaming licenses in Iowa is retroactive, meaning it could overwrite an upcoming decision set to be made by the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission (IRGC) on Thursday.It would be second casino ban in the last five years, and it is advancing through the Iowa stat
The Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission will not make a decision in the petition challenging Cedar Rapids casino efforts. This comes after commissioners heard oral arguments Thursday from both Riverside and Linn County lawyers.The petition, filed by Riverside Casino and the Washington County Riverboat
Beginning next week, Iowa lawmakers are expected to again consider a moratorium blocking the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission from awarding new gaming licenses in Iowa, which would thwart Cedar Rapids casino backers’ hopes for a new $275 million facility.Rep. Bobby Kaufmann, R-Wilton, chair of the
The Linn County Gaming Association and Cedar Rapids Development Group have filed a brief in response to the petition seeking to block the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission’s consideration of a Cedar Rapids casino license.The response, filed Jan. 8, asks the IRGC to “refuse to issue a declaratory ord
Iowa lawmakers are poised to debate legislation that would block the construction of new casinos in the state, with a proposal expected to surface early in the 2025 legislative session. The measure, a response to Cedar Rapids’ ambitions to establish the Cedar Crossing Casino, would halt new casino d
Two market studies released ahead of the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission’s decision on the proposed Cedar Crossing Casino in Linn County reveal significant financial implications for the state’s gaming industry.The studies, conducted by Marquette Advisors of Minneapolis and The Innovation Group of
The license holder for Dubuque’s casinos has helped form an organization aiming to block a proposed casino and event center in nearby Cedar Rapids, Iowa.Members of the organization say the proposed casino would hurt economic development efforts in eastern Iowa, including the tri-state area.Dubuque-a
The Ponca Tribe of Nebraska is celebrating the sixth anniversary of the Prairie Flower Casino, which Nov. 1, 2018.While the slots are rolling in the original space, work crews are busy constructing the expansion, growing the casino from its current 7,000 square feet to 70,000 square feet.“[We had] 2
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