GRANTVILLE, Pa. & WYOMISSING, Pa.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Hollywood Casino at Penn National Race Course and parent company Penn National Gaming, Inc. announced today that Hollywood Casino has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Dauphin County to maintain its Local Share Assessment payments, required under the Pennsylvania Gaming Act, which are distributed to Dauphin County as well as the municipalities of East Hanover Township in Dauphin County and East Hanover Township in Lebanon County. On September 28, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court struck down the LSA provisions in the Pennsylvania Gaming Act, finding they either violated the Uniformity Clause of the Pennsylvania Constitution or were not severable. The General Assembly attempted to pass a new law preserving the LSA payments beyond January 27, 2017, when the Supreme Court’s decision takes effect, but was unsuccessful prior to adjourning on October 27.
“We greatly appreciate Penn National Gaming stepping up to the plate and voluntarily offering this MOU to reassure our county and local municipalities and non-profit beneficiaries that the essential LSA funds will continue uninterrupted”
Eric Schippers, Sr. Vice President of Public Affairs for Penn National Gaming, said of the MOU, “In the wake of the Supreme Court decision, we supported a Legislative fix that would ensure our LSA payments continued uninterrupted, but unfortunately the House and Senate could not agree on an approach. Having always enjoyed a strong relationship with Dauphin County and our host municipalities, we quickly offered to sign an MOU preserving the LSA payments until at least June 30 to ease the communities’ concerns about these critical revenues pending a long term legislative solution.”
“We greatly appreciate Penn National Gaming stepping up to the plate and voluntarily offering this MOU to reassure our county and local municipalities and non-profit beneficiaries that the essential LSA funds will continue uninterrupted,” said Jeff Haste, Chairman of the Dauphin County Board of Commissioners. “Hollywood Casino has proven, time and again, to be a responsible business leader and economic engine in Dauphin County, and we are grateful for our collective partnership.”
The MOU will become effective on January 27, 2017 should the Pennsylvania Supreme Court fail to extend the stay of its decision on September 28, 2016 or if the Pennsylvania General Assembly is unable to craft a legislative solution to resolve the uniformity defects in the LSA section of the Pennsylvania Gaming Act.
About Penn National Gaming
Penn National Gaming owns, operates or has ownership interests in gaming and racing facilities and video gaming terminal operations with a focus on slot machine entertainment. At October 31, 2016, the Company operated twenty-seven facilities in seventeen jurisdictions, including California, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Maine, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, West Virginia, and Ontario. At October 31, 2016, in aggregate, Penn National Gaming operated approximately 33,400 gaming machines, 800 table games and 4,600 hotel rooms.
