Indiana Casino Study Bill to Identify Possible Gaming Locations Clears Senate

Posted on: February 21, 2025, 07:34h. 

Last updated on: February 21, 2025, 09:09h.

Devin O'Connor @CasinoorgDevinO Read More
Expertise: Asia Pacific Gaming, Commercial Gaming, Legislation, Politics.

Indiana lawmakers opted not to expand gaming in the Hoosier State in 2025, but they could pass a bill that would initiate an independent study to identify the top three regions where current gaming facilities might relocate.

Indiana casino Indianapolis
The Indiana Statehouse in Indianapolis is where legislators are mulling whether to force a study to identify ideal locations for new casinos. The statute wouldn’t expand casino gambling but would allow current properties to relocate to more desirable markets. (Image: Shutterstock)

Senate Bill 43 was introduced in January by Sens. Andy Zay (R-Huntington), Ron Alting (R-Lafayette), and Lonnie Randolph (D-East Chicago). The measure seeks to require the Indiana Gaming Commission (IGC) to contract an independent, qualified market research firm to identify three untapped gaming markets that would be attractive to the state’s current 13 brick-and-mortar casinos, riverboats, and racinos and better generate gaming tax revenue for the state.

SB 43 passed the full Senate during a third reading of the statute on Tuesday with a 33-16 vote. The tally came just two days before the Indiana General Assembly’s February 20 crossover deadline for legislation to move from one chamber to the other.

Republicans in the GOP-controlled Senate accounted for 26 of the “yea” votes, though 14 conservative lawmakers voted against the measure. Seven Democrats voted “yea” to only two “nays.” 

Casinos Seek More Attractive Markets

Most of Indiana’s casinos are located in the southern half of the state, with four exceptions in Northwest Indiana — Horseshoe, Ameristar, Hard Rock, and Blue Chip — and the Harrah’s racino in Madison County. When Indiana legalized casinos in the early 1990s, the legislature did so only for riverboats on the Ohio River and boats on Lake Michigan.

At the time, those locations were attractive because commercial casinos didn’t operate in neighboring Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Illinois. Today, casinos are located in Ohio and Cincinnati, slot-like historical horse racing machines are legal in Kentucky, and Chicago has allowed casinos both downtown and in its rural communities.  

Earlier this year, legislation written at the request of Full House Resorts filed by Zay sought to allow the Las Vegas-based company to move its gaming license from Rising Sun along the Ohio River and the Kentucky border. Full House petitioned the General Assembly for the right to relocate its gaming business roughly 150 miles north to Allen County’s New Haven in the northeastern part of the state.

Gaming has declined considerably at Rising Sun Casino Resort. In the 2024 fiscal year, the riverboat won less than $44 million from gamblers. In 2012, the casino generated gross gaming revenue of almost $93 million.

Full House pledged to pay a $150 million relocation fee over five years. It would also be forced to pay $50 million should it sell or transfer its ownership of the New Haven property within five years of relocating.

Zay’s Senate Bill 293 was tabled by the Senate Committee on Public Policy. Alting, who chairs the committee, said a study on favorable markets was needed before approving the relocation. A bill to authorize iGaming and iLottery was also ditched.

Indianapolis Casino

If the state wants to reap the full benefits of a commercial casino market, many state lawmakers say a property must open in Indianapolis. The state capital is a major destination for conventions, events, and sports.

2024 was a record-breaking year for Indianapolis tourism, with Visit Indy, the city’s tourism and convention bureau, reporting that the capital metro “welcomed more visitors than ever before.” The agency added that 2025 has already set “a record for future convention business.”