Myth #1: Gambling increases personal bankruptcy rates.

• Fact: A 1999 study for the U.S. Treasury showed that there was no link between gambling and bankruptcy rates.
• Fact: Nebraska, which does not have casino-style gambling, has a higher rate of personal bankruptcies than either South Dakota or Iowa.
• Fact: Utah, the only state in the nation without any form of gambling, consistently has one of the highest rates of personal bankruptcy. 
• Fact: Clearly, the major causes of personal bankruptcy are loss of a job, uninsured health care expenses, and misuse of sloppily issued credit.  Gambling simply does not rank among the  major causes of personal bankruptcies.  Some studies even suggest that the rate of increase in personal bankruptcies in non-casino areas is higher than the rate of increase in communities with gaming activity.

Myth # 2: Gambling causes crime. 

• Fact: Separate studies by the National Institute for Justice and the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago declared that there was no link between crime and gambling.
• Fact: Nebraska, with no casino-style gambling, has a higher crime rate per capita than either Iowa or South Dakota.
• Fact: Crimes reported to the Des Moines, Iowa, police department declined by 20% (1995-2001) following the introduction of casino gaming into that capital city’s  suburb, of Altoona.  In the same time frame, crimes reported to the police department in Nebraska’s capital city of Lincoln rose 4.2%.

Myth #3: Gambling “devastates” retail sales 

• Fact: Separate and independent studies by Arthur Anderson, the Illinois Economic and Fiscal Commission, Dr. Douglas Turco of Illinois State University and the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago directly refute this claim.
• Fact: In nearby Iowa, average retail sales grew in communities with nearby casinos between 1998 and 2003 by a rate of 4.5% while statewide retail sales grew at only 2.7%. 
• Fact:  In a seven-year period following the introduction of casino gaming in Council Bluffs, Iowa, just a short bridge away from its borders, Douglas County, Nebraska, experienced a 30% increase in net taxable retail sales.

Myth #4: Gambling will increase unemployment and raise welfare costs

• Fact: The National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago conducted a study for the U.S. Congress that showed when casinos are introduced into a community, jobs increase, unemployment rates fall and welfare costs go down. 
• Fact: Nebraska, which does not have casino-style gambling, has higher welfare costs per capita than either Iowa or South Dakota.

Myth #5: All the money from gambling will go to Las Vegas.

• Fact: With one of the nation’s highest proposed gambling tax rates, much more money will stay in Nebraska from casinos than from any national retail, restaurant or entertainment business. 
• Fact: Many Nebraskans will compete for and get a major share of new businesses opportunities under this plan. Local communities are in control and can be expected to put Nebraska first. 
• Fact: Casinos generate jobs with good pay and benefits that benefit the local economy. 

 One thing is not debatable: The Nebraska economy is losing nearly  $400,000,000 per year – over $100,000,000 per year in state and local taxes alone. It is time to keep the money in Nebraska.

WHILE A RULE IN THE NEBRASKA CONSTITUTION CLOUDS ANY EFFORT TO KEEP THE MONEY IN NEBRASKA IN 2006, 2008 WILL PRESENT AN OPPORTUNITY TO DO IT RIGHT.