NYS board devises a better casino licensing process
A state board changed the licensing process for new casinos, like the one (rendering above) pitched by Las Vegas Sands. Credit: The Sands Corp.
Last week, the state board overseeing the casino licensing process established a clear and sensible timetable for awarding three available downstate casino licenses. That was long overdue. Now, casino license applications will be due next June. By December 2025, licenses will be awarded — and enormous fees to the state will be paid.
That's a schedule that makes sense. It puts the communities that would host the casinos first. It allows the public to weigh in, and provides time for important environmental reviews and understanding potential mitigation efforts, before applications are submitted.
The plan to award three licenses in New York City and its suburbs remains an important one. If done well, it could generate tremendous economic benefits. But legitimate concerns remain, so the actual process is critical. The new timetable puts applicants on an even playing field with ample time to prepare, get required approvals, and most important, engage with the public. It also allows for initial funds — a license fee of at least $500 million from each of three winners — to be paid in 2025.
That influx of cash is especially important now. The fees, which could rise to $1 billion each, are earmarked by law for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. If put toward the MTA's capital plan, that money could become critical in light of Gov. Kathy Hochul's decision to “pause” congestion pricing.
But much has to happen before the deadlines. Casino giants and developers have to secure leases and permission to build on their chosen sites. Many applicants require additional zoning approvals and must go through state environmental reviews, too. The new timetable from the Gaming Facility Location Board is superior to one in state legislation passed last month. Under that bill, applications would be due in August, but the deadline for licensing decisions would remain in December 2025.
That bill appears to favor applicants with existing video lottery terminal operations in Yonkers and at Aqueduct — the two proposals closest to the legislation's sponsors, State Sen. Joseph Addabbo and Assemb. Gary Pretlow. It forces applicants to file paperwork before zoning and environmental reviews that could substantially change plans. Hochul now can choose not to sign it. But Addabbo says legislation is still necessary to enforce any timetable. If lawmakers feel that's important, they should rewrite the legislation to match the board's carefully thought-out timetable.
The gaming board's decision also sets up another important step: Applicants have been awaiting answers to their second round of questions for months. The board removed the tie between those answers and the application due date, so answers can — and should — be released quickly.
The road ahead is intense, complex, and paramount to the ultimate casino licensing decisions. It's important to let the process play out, and participate as much as possible. This isn't a bet the state can lose.
MEMBERS OF THE EDITORIAL BOARD are experienced journalists who offer reasoned opinions, based on facts, to encourage informed debate about the issues facing our community.