Overshadowed in the early Wednesday morning drama of the Illinois House of Representatives approving a budget that included changing the sports betting taxation method to progressive rates ranging from 20% to 40%, the passage of HB 4951 also increased the state tax on video gaming terminals (VGTs) by one percentage point to 35%.
Story continues below
There was little pushback to the increase during the floor debate over the whole bill, which included a raft of other tax revenue items that received extensive back-and-forth in the lower chamber. The one percentage point increase is expected to provide $50 million in state taxes, which would also mean $10 million in local taxes based on the current 83-17 split of Net Terminal Income (NTI) tax.
