Mississippi Casino Smoking Will Remain After Legislation Extinguished

Posted on: February 5, 2025, 12:15h. 

Last updated on: February 5, 2025, 12:32h.

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

Mississippi casino smoking will endure after legislative efforts to force gamblers to light up outside failed in the Jackson capital.

Mississippi casino smoking tobacco
A blackjack gambler blows cigarette smoke toward the dealer. Mississippi casino smoking will remain in most properties after legislation seeking to force a statewide ban on indoor tobacco failed in the Jackson capital. (Image: Casino.org)

Last month, Casino.org reported on state Rep. Bryant Clark (D-Pickens) filing House Bill 361. Dubbed the Mississippi Smoke-Free Air Act of 2025, the legislation sought to install a tobacco ban for most enclosed public buildings and workplaces.

Clark’s HB361 was directed to the House Public Health and Human Services Committee where it died after not receiving a vote. Despite Clark sitting on the committee, the Republican-controlled group led by Chair Rep. Richard Bennett (R-Long Beach) deferred the anti-smoking statute.

Unlike most states, Mississippi doesn’t have a statewide smoke-free law that prohibits the use of tobacco products, including cigarettes, in most business settings and public places. Instead, the Magnolia State allows individual communities to determine whether indoor smoking is allowed and in what capacities.

The Mississippi State Department of Health says 187 municipalities are smoke-free, with 157 additionally outlawing electronic cigarettes. Just seven of the 82 counties in Mississippi have smoke-free ordinances.

Smoking Law Continually Shown the Door

Clark’s push to clear the air inside Mississippi casinos was commendable, but its defeat wasn’t unexpected. The Holmes County state representative has filed a smoke-free law each legislative session since 2013 to no avail.

Bennett represents Harrison County where many of the state’s most profitable casinos operate along the Gulf of Mexico, or Gulf of America, according to President Donald Trump.

Mississippi’s Gulf Coast is the fifth-richest casino market in the United States behind the Las Vegas Strip, Atlantic City, Chicagoland, and Baltimore-Washington, DC. In 2024, the 12 casinos in the Mississippi Gulf Coast segment generated gross gaming revenue (GGR) of more than $1.58 billion.

Beau Rivage, Boomtown, Golden Nugget, Hard Rock, Harrah’s, Hollywood, IP, Island View, Palace, Scarlet Pearl, Silver Slipper, and Treasure Bay jointly employed 11,179 people as of December. Many of the lawmakers who are opposed to making the state go smoke-free claim casinos would suffer, as some gamblers who enjoy lighting up while spinning a slot or rolling the dice might take their business to neighboring Louisiana or Arkansas where casino smoking is also permitted.

Smoke-Free Casinos 

Despite being allowed to offer smoking on its gaming floor, Island View in Gulfport has gone smoke-free. There are also other casinos in Mississippi where indoor smoking isn’t allowed, whether it be because of local ordinances or an owner’s decision to provide a clean indoor air environment.

Along with Island View, smoke-free Mississippi casinos include Magnolia Bluffs in Natchez. The Bok Homa Casino, a tribal property owned and operated by the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians, also offers smoke-free gaming in Heidelberg.

Smoking rates in Mississippi remain considerably higher than the national average, with about 20% of adults saying they light up regularly. Only about 8% of adults nationwide report being regular tobacco users.

Mississippi’s smoking rate decreased from more than a quarter of adults a decade ago.