Smoke on the water: Can it solve N.J. casino issue ?
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Let’s be clear about this: New Jersey lawmakers should ban smoking on casino floors, for the health of their employees and customers.
But, it appears that Legislature is in no mood to call the bluff of Atlantic City gaming hall operators. Our representatives in Trenton seem to accept without question the Casino Association’s claim that revenue and profits would decline sharply if they could no longer let their patrons puff and play at the same time, on up to 25% of the floor space.
To see how lawmakers and Gov. Phil Murphy and kowtow to the casinos, go back to December. Former state Senate President Stephen Sweeney, who is no longer in the Legislature, won a new tax break for most of the casinos by claiming that up to four of them would fold without the accounting change. An extensive project by investigative journalism group ProPublica and the Press of Atlantic City indicated that the assertion was mostly bunk. It concluded that while Resorts and Bally’s were under more financial pressure than the others, there was no verifiable evidence that either would have closed under the former tax structure.
It would have been a perfect time to tie a smoking ban to the extra profits, but that didn’t happen. So, the three-way stalemate goes on among casino interests, employee groups who want a ban and our scaredy-cat Legislature.
Now, there’s another possible solution on the coastal horizon, as first reported publicly by the Associated Press: outdoor gaming areas where smoking could be allowed.
Surprisingly, the idea hasn’t been met with pure venom from most of the potential stakeholders. “As long as no worker is exposed to secondhand smoke, a truly outdoor area could be a workable solution,” Pete Naccarelli, a Borgata dealer and a leader of the anti-smoking employee group, told the Associated Press.
The AP article notes that outdoor gaming is offered in several other casino cities across the country. In Las Vegas, you can play card games in the pool. Harrah’s in New Orleans has a fully outdoor section to take advantage of the weather (except maybe in August — or during a hurricane). Hard Rock in Cincinnati has a “smoking patio,” which is what many New Jersey bars and restaurants created when the state first banned public smoking indoors — and didn’t give proprietors the same exemption as the casino operators.
COVID-19 indoor seating limits further expanded caused outdoor dining on sidewalks or parking lots, so much so that Gov. Murphy recently approved a law continuing it for two more years. The oceanfront and inlet geography of Atlantic City’s casinos seems to lend itself to outdoor gambling as much as the seasonal “beach bars” that hotels currently operate on the sand. Let’s not pretend, though, that it’s just as simple.
First, defining that “outdoors” designation will be tricky. In Maryland, outdoor gambling areas are mostly enclosed — which could still trap workers and non-smoking gamblers in a haze that resembles a miniature temperature inversion. Ventilation systems could be installed, but they use lots of energy and still risk spewing smoke-filled air directly onto the beach, adversely affecting swimmers and marine life.
Making outdoor gambling areas free of table-game personnel, and relying on virtual blackjack, poker, etc., would meet demands that no employee be exposed to continuous second-hand smoke. But power supply could be an issue, especially with slots. Who wants to risk standing at an electricity-sucking machine during a thunderstorm? You may be less likely to hit a jackpot than get hit by lightning, but most folks won’t fancy weighing the odds. Then, there’s the possibly of using boats to provide floating casinos.
Are we stacking the deck with more reasons to pass on outdoor opportunities than to try them? Maybe, but remember that they’ve worked out logistical challenges in other regions. As long as the unions, the casino management and the state regulators haven’t completely doused the idea with chilly ocean water, they should keep talking about this. Even if outdoor options don’t yield the complete indoor smoking ban that is needed, they might provide some incremental progress toward compromise.
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