Horry County鈥檚 Administrative Committee on Sept. 18 agreed to an ordinance that would raise the surcharge the county charges the casino boats operating in Little River from $10 a passenger to $15 in 2025 and $18 in 2030.
County attorney David Jordan said state law allows the county to charge the boats a surcharge per boarding passenger. The original agreement called for $7, but a new agreement in 2015 gave the county an option for an increase.
Jordan said in 2015 the county agreed to keep the surcharge at $7 for five years then boost it to $10 for the next five.
Under the proposed ordinance, the surcharge will remain at $10 until March 31, 2025, then increase to $15 on April 1, 2025. That would jump to $18 on Jan. 1, 2030.
The Big M Casino, which docks two gambling boats in the small community of Little River, is currently the only casino company operating in the Palmetto state. Gambling is not allowed on the vessels until they reach international waters. According to a My Horry 黑料社入口 FOIA request earlier this year, the county's agreement with the casino companies has brought $15.6 million to the county since the gambling boats began docking in Little River in 2008.
The move to increase the per passenger surcharge must be introduced as an ordinance and pass three county council readings.
(1) comment
Curious how much money has Casino M has made last year. Shouldn鈥檛 that be public knowledge. What percentage does the State of South Carolina get from Casino M?
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