Each of the 17 Iowa communities that currently host casinos passed referendums last week that will allow each of them to continue their operations, however, the battles are not over. The next issue facing the casinos is whether smoking will still continue to be permitted.
Both candidates that are currently running for governor have said they oppose continuing to allow smoking in casinos and would sign a smoking ban into law if it could pass in the legislature.
Wes Ehrecke, president of the Iowa Gaming Association, has said the Association does not support this smoking ban in the state’s casinos. He and other Association members believe that “it would be a competitive disadvantage with the tribal nation casinos that have a sovereign nation status.
“There is significant research to show in other states where they have banned smoking that it could be a 25 to 30 percent drop in revenue, and therefore it could be a $60 to 90 million drop in revenue to the state, and certainly to the charitable contributions and the purchasing of Iowa based products and services,” said Ehrecke, “but more importantly the casinos have been very proactive in having a non-smoking section within their casinos. And they have state-of-the-art filtration/ventilation systems to accommodate both smokers and non-smokers.”
Ehrecke believes that each of the state’s casinos have made conscious efforts to accommodate both smokers and non-smokers.
“Collectively we’re Iowa’s largest tourist attraction with nearly 23 million visitors, and so we have to be very proactive in providing a great environment for a premiere entertainment destination,” said Ehrecke.
The Iowa Smoke-free Air Act has been in effect in the state since 2008. This law banned smoking in most public places, however, it contained an exception for gambling floors in the state’s casinos.
