The Gun Lake Casino revenues to the Local Revenue Sharing board totaled more than $2.26 million for the period from April 1 to Sept. 30 this year.
The State of Michigan received $5,221,249, and GLIMI, an economic development entity, received $1,566,375.
“This revenue sharing distribution validates development decisions made by Tribal Council and casino management to study market demand and place value on guest experience,” said Bob Peters, chairman of the Gun Lake Tribe. “Our economic impact study confirms that our success supports thousands of great jobs while providing substantial benefits to Michigan’s economy.”
The Tribe last month released the findings of an economic impact study, developed by the Innovation Group, showing the tribal government, Casino and Gun Lake Investments added $1.5 billion to Michigan’s economy from 2011 to 2017. The Tribe’s annual economic impact contributes $228 million to the state’s economy while supporting 2,600 jobs.
The Tribe’s state revenue sharing payments are dependent on the continued preservation of exclusive gaming rights within its competitive market area, as defined by the tribal-state gaming compact, which also includes statewide expansion of certain lottery games. The market area includes the cities of Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, and Lansing, as well as the entire counties of Kent, Kalamazoo and Ingham, among others.
The Tribe has now shared more than $80 million with the State of Michigan, which directs the payments to the Michigan Economic Development Corporation. The MEDC in turn awards grants to businesses to invest in Michigan and create jobs.
The Local Revenue Sharing Board receives and administers the semi-annual payments. The gaming compact prescribes mandatory funding to local municipalities for: costs incurred due to the operation of the casino; public safety services; and replacement of tax revenue. The Board established by-laws to govern the distribution process. The local payments are made under terms of the gaming compact independent of gaming exclusivity.
Gun Lake Casino opened in February 2011 and now employs more than 1,000 team members. The Gun Lake Tribe has now shared $118,368,404 with state and local governments over 16 distributions.
