Of the four Missouri ballot initiatives and two gambling-related ones, the proposal to allow a casino on the Lake of the Ozarks was the only one rejected by local election officials.
That’s not the case anymore.
Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft’s office initially said the initiative was 2,031 signatures short in the 2nd Congressional District. However, proponents reviewed the rejects and found an additional 2,230 valid signatures from the district.
According to a report from the Missouri Independent, proponents planned a trial over the development. A U.S. District Court judge in Cole County was set to hear the case, but Ashcroft’s office conceded on Friday.
Consequently, voters can choose whether to add a 14th casino to the Show Me State.
Proposal would change the state constitution
The initiative will be on this November’s ballot as Amendment 5. The amendment would alter the Missouri Constitution to allow a casino on the lake. The new property would be built between the Osage River and the Bagnell Dam.
Under the current legal landscape, Missouri is limited to 13 retail casinos. Those casinos are all technically riverboat casinos. But the properties are docked just inches off land, and most patrons won’t even realize they are on the water.
Lawmakers have yet to discuss legalizing Missouri online casinos. Thus, sweepstakes and social casinos are Missourians’ only options for online gaming.
The Osage River Gaming and Convention group backed the initiative. Bally’s, which already operates a casino in Kansas City, and RIS Inc., a regional developer, were the group’s financiers.
The two entities donated a combined $4.3 million for the signature-gathering process.
According to projections from the group, the new casino would add 700 jobs and $16.4 million in new revenue from taxes and fees.
Casino initiative moves in opposite direction of sports betting
In addition to the casino proposal, Missourians can legalize sports betting this November.
Ashcroft approved an initiative funded by FanDuel, DraftKings, and the state’s pro sports franchises earlier this month. It gives voters the chance to legalize a Missouri sports betting industry.
But the proposal could take the opposite route of the casino initiative. After initially getting the green light from Ashcroft, opponents filed a lawsuit to get it off November’s ballot.
The suit claims that some signatures filed by Winning for Missouri Education, the group behind the signature-gathering process, were flawed.
If the court hears the case and finds the signatures aren’t up to snuff, the initiative would be taken off the ballot, leaving the Lake of the Ozarks casino as the only gambling-related choice for voters this fall.
