Caesars contesting $50M fee for 2 Indiana casino licenses

INDIANAPOLIS — Casino giant Caesars Entertainment is threatening to drop plans for building a new casino in southern Indiana while arguing that it shouldn't be forced to pay a $50 million fee in the state for acquiring two horse track casinos near Indianapolis.

Las Vegas-based Caesars announced in November that it would pay $1.7 billion to buy Centaur Gaming, which owns Hoosier Park, a casino and racetrack in Anderson, and the Indiana Grand casino and racetrack in Shelbyville.

Caesars argues the state fee for transferring those casino licenses shouldn't apply. The company also told the Indiana Gaming Commission that it's reconsidering a $90 million project for building an on-land casino to replace the riverboat at its Horseshoe Southern Indiana casino near Louisville, Kentucky, the Indianapolis Business Journal reported .

Indiana law prohibits one company from owning more than two casinos in Indiana. But that rule doesn't apply to racetrack-based casinos, which are authorized under a different law.

Read more: https://lasvegassun.com/news/2018/mar/12/caesars-contesting-50m-fee-for-2-indiana-casino-li/