December 6

Edward Stanek, the president of the Iowa Lottery, thinks the ever expanding number of casinos in Iowa stands to take a bite out of the sale of lottery tickets. In doing so, he feels that it will most definitely dwindle the amount of money going to various state programs the need the revenue.

In his letter written to the state's legislative leaders back in November, Stanek cautioned that more casinos and expanded table games at racetracks would cut into the lottery's much needed profits.

Last year, the Iowa Lottery made $56 million. Most of the revenue helped pay for education, environmental and public safety programs.

Stanek says that new casinos along with the addition of table games at racetracks in Iowa will cause more competition for the typical consumers' discretionary income, basically causing more competition for the Iowa Lottery and other entertainment industry businesses.

The Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission is taking into consideration applications for 10 new casino licenses spread throughout Iowa. The pending decisions will come in May or June 2005.