Casinos applying for one of the three commercial licences available in downstate New York could have until June 27, 2025, to submit their bids.
The unanimous decision was made by the New York Gaming Facility Location Board, which oversees the ongoing commercial casino licensing process for downstate New York.
However, it goes against the August 31, 2024 deadline stipulated in Senator Joseph Addabbo’s bill S9673A, which passed through the US state’s House and the Senate earlier this month.
The Gaming Facility Location Board stated in a meeting last Thursday that they thought the deadline at the end of this summer was too tight and in conflict with the bill.
Board member Stuart Rabinowitz said the August 2024 deadline is too soon as it “would put some potential applicants under a lot of pressure and would favour some and disfavour others”.
Meanwhile, the June 2025 deadline was considered to be far away enough for applicants to be prepared, while also being early enough for the board to thoroughly consider applications before its December 31, 2025 approval deadline.
Nevertheless, S9673A is still awaiting the signature of Governor Kathy Hochul after being approved by the legislature and if signed, the August deadline will remain in place.
Newly appointed Gaming Facility Location Board Chair Vicki Been stated that the board doesn’t need to wait for Hochul before voting on its own deadline, adding that “the hope would be that our reasoning would also be convincing to the governor”.
New York has asked operators to bid for one of three potential licences available to build a brick-and-mortar casino in New York City or its surrounding areas.
However, the process has been ongoing now for several years.
Currently, 11 proposals have been filed by operators such as Bally’s, Caesars Entertainment, MGM Resorts, Hard Rock, Las Vegas Sands and Mohegan, with the locations of these casinos spanning across the downstate region.
Addabbo’s bill has a March 31, 2026 deadline for when licences need to be issued, calculating that the new casinos could generate up to $3bn for the state in casino licence fees.
