Steuben County Isn’t the Only Indiana County Asking Voters to Approve Casino Gambling

Steuben County Commissioners are supportive of asking voters whether they support allowing a casino through a local ballot referendum during this November’s election. Steuben, however, won’t be the only county in Indiana asking voters the very same question.

This week, the Steuben County Board of Commissioners reapproved a second resolution to place a ballot question before residents questioning them about their gaming support. The board passed a casino referendum for a second time after there was a legal dispute about whether the state law enacted earlier this year that designated Steuben to mull a casino required any action from the local government.

House Bill 1038, signed by Indiana Gov. Mike Braun (R) in March, authorized the counties of Steuben, Allen, and DeKalb to weigh casino endorsements through local referendums. The law came at the request of Full House Resorts, which had sought to relocate its Indiana gaming license from Rising Sun to a more attractive market, somewhere in the northeastern part of the state.

Legal Questioning

HB1038 authorized the three counties to conduct casino referendums. Steuben County Commissioners initially thought the bill required them to pass an ordinance directing its Board of Elections to conduct the gaming referendum during the Nov. 3 election.

The county clerk’s office later informed the commissioners that the ordinance they passed in May was not needed, and wrongly implied that the county—not the state—was ordering the referendum. After consulting with Steuben County Attorney Donald Stuckey, the board concluded that the May resolution was erroneous.

Stuckey, however, advised the board to pass a second resolution, with the language stating that the action comes as a result of the state law, to “have all bases covered.”

Come November, Steuben County voters will be asked the simple question:

Shall inland casino gambling be permitted in Steuben County?”

Steuben County November referendum question

Steuben voters won’t be alone in facing a gaming question, as referendums are also mandated in Allen and DeKalb. Despite less enthusiasm for casinos among those county governments, HB1038 forces the ballot questions and similar language.

“Shall inland casino gambling be permitted in Allen County?” and “Shall inland casino gambling be permitted in DeKalb County?” will face voters in those two counties.

Bidding Window Short

HB1038 offers an exceptionally short bidding window for interested casino developers, with bids due to the Indiana Gaming Commission by Dec. 1, 2026.

The law qualifies “any operator of a brick-and-mortar casino located in the United States” to apply for a casino license in any of the three counties that field gaming referendums with majority support.

Applicants must present project investments of at least $500 million, with at least 60% invested within two years of the license being awarded.