INDIANAPOLIS – Auditor of State Connie Nass again directed her office to process revenue sharing distributions to non-riverboat counties 11 days ahead of schedule on August 4, 2004. Those monies will be distributed by electronic funds transfer or check. Next month, supplemental casino admissions tax revenues to riverboat counties will also be processed in advance, on September 2. Revenue sharing distributions to non-riverboat counties must be made before August 15, 2004, and supplemental admissions tax distributions to riverboat counties must be made before September 15, 2004.

The 2003 Budget Act authorized supplemental distributions to bring admissions tax revenues received during the 2004 fiscal year up to the base year revenue level. Indiana law limits gaming revenue distributions to government units in counties with riverboats to their “base year revenue”. “Base year revenue” is defined as the amount paid to the local government unit during the state fiscal year 2002.

This is the second year in a row Auditor Nass directed her settlements department to distribute riverboat revenues sharing payments and supplemental casino admissions taxes to counties and local governments as soon as the money became available. In 2003, riverboat revenue sharing distributions were made 11 days early and supplemental casino admissions tax distributions were made 41 days ahead of schedule.

“It is an ongoing policy in my office to ensure that revenues are distributed to local governments as early as possible,” stated Nass. “State government must always remember that local governments provide many of the most immediate and necessary services for Hoosiers’ quality of life. As a former mayor and city councilman, I am well aware of the hardship that any delay in the receipt of revenues can cause a community. Unfortunately, due to a decrease in available revenue from last year, we are not able to make the supplemental casino admission tax distributions until September, but we will still get that money to the relevant counties as early as possible.”

Summaries of the supplemental distributions to gaming counties and revenue sharing payments to other counties are attached to this release.

2004 Supplemental Admission Tax Dist Summary

2004 RIVERBOAT REVENUE SHARING COUNTY TOTALS