THE CHEAP SEATS with STEVE CAMERON: Time for Idaho to gamble on itself

Let’s talk about gambling today.

Specifically, we need to note how so many states are legalizing sports betting, and thus relieving the tax burden on ordinary citizens.

That does not include Idaho, of course, for reasons that make no logical sense.

It isn’t that Idahoans aren’t going to bet.

They can (and do) go to several Native American reservation casinos, and just across the border, Washington is busy implementing legal sports betting — which will put hundreds of millions of dollars into that state’s coffers.

What exactly is it about a conservative pioneer state (like ours) that urges the populace to fight against legal betting?

I mean, you don’t have to indulge in it yourself.

If the idea is to take some sort of moral high ground, why is the state allowing the sale (and taking tax money) from liquor and cigarettes?

I mean, there is no state mandate to have a cocktail before dinner.

WHETHER you swill a beer from time to time, or are a complete teetotaler, that tax money from the sale of booze helps pay for roads, schools and all the other things where we expect a state government to help pick up the tab.

Why is gambling any different?

I was the sports editor at a newspaper in Provo, Utah, several years ago, and tried to make this same argument when it turned out the state was 50th — yes, dead last — in spending on education.

Utah already had a lottery, so a moral stand against gambling seemed a little silly.

Meanwhile, there were towns bordering the state — Wendover, Nev.; Evanston, Wyo.; and Mesquite, Nev. — all doing a booming business with casinos and sports betting parlors.

It always made me laugh to notice that those places were jammed with cars that had Utah license plates.

Clearly, my Utah brethren were flocking to these gambling meccas, with all the tax money flowing briskly away across the various borders.

OK, now let’s look back home.

The state of Idaho has run a lottery since 1989, which tells you that the movers and shakers in the legislature weren’t against finding a source of income when they needed one.

Most made it clear that THEY wouldn’t participate in a game of chance — but why not get some tax money from folks who, as they say in Britain, wanted to have a flutter?

Lotteries are perfect for the American dream: Do nothing except buy a ticket, win the big prize, and move to the Caribbean.

You almost certainly won’t, obviously, but the teeny, tiny possibility is there — so why not go for it?

I’M NOT trying to compare Idaho with Nevada, New York or New Jersey, the busiest gambling centers in the country (no, I wouldn’t want to live in any of those places, either).

However, there are some numbers from those states that are worth learning and considering.

Here’s a quick tutorial, courtesy of Front Office Sports …

New York opened online sports betting on Jan. 8, handling $150 million in its first weekend across DraftKings, FanDuel, Rush Street Interactive, and Caesars sportsbooks.

New York expects to bring in $249 million in revenue this year, jumping to $357 million in revenue in fiscal 2023.

By fiscal 2027, the state forecasts it will record $518 million in revenue per year.

New York has more than 20 million residents and one of the highest tax rates in any legal U.S. sports betting jurisdiction — 51% for 10 years.

The state will use its revenue for youth sports programs, education, and addressing problem gambling.

IDAHO is not New York.

Thank heaven.

But even if you cut those betting numbers down to 10 percent of the projected totals — 20 million residents down to roughly two million here — we’re still talking a sizeable chunk of money.

Idahoans aren’t likely to gamble as often as New Yorkers (although, shoot, maybe they WILL), yet even when you reduce the numbers to just five percent of the New York take, that would be $12.5 million in revenue this year.

So, you’re a conservative and moved here for the lower taxes — among larger gun mags and other things?

Why not let gamblers subsidize that tax base and knock your basic taxes even further?

There’s a reason Nevada has no state income tax.

Remember, you don’t HAVE to go live at a roulette wheel to benefit from legal gambling.

In fact, you can sit at home and make a profit on your tax bills.

It’s just common sense to keep that money in the state, instead of donating it to Washington.

So …

Why not?

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Steve Cameron’s “Cheap Seats” columns appear in The Press on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. He also writes Zags Tracker, a commentary on Gonzaga basketball which is published weekly during the season.

Steve suggests you take his opinions in the spirit of a Jimmy Buffett song: “Breathe In, Breathe Out, Move On.”