Texas thinks big about adding casino gambling

AUSTIN, Texas -- Casino gambling in Texas should be done with a bang -- with large resorts that attract convention-goers and tourists, proponents including a prominent Las Vegas casino developer told state lawmakers Wednesday.

"If we're going to do this, let's do it on such a scale that we get the best bang, the best value, for Texas dollars," said Democratic Rep. Jose Menendez of San Antonio, who with other lawmakers proposed a sweeping resort casino plan that would also allow slot machines at race tracks and on American Indian lands.

A much-anticipated House committee hearing on a host of casino gambling bills got under way Wednesday in a packed room at the Capitol, where the flash of Las Vegas showed itself early in the day.

"Not all casinos are created equal," said Sheldon Adelson, chairman and chief executive of the Las Vegas Sands Corp. "Destination resort is the way to go."

Texas is a prime spot to build large casino resorts that offer shows, restaurants and shopping and can lure convention business, Adelson told legislators. He showed large glossy photos of his company's properties -- The Venetian and the Palazzo in Las Vegas, and a casino development in Macau that cost billions of dollars to build.

Adelson predicted his company and others would be interested in vying for casino licenses in Texas and said construction money would be available despite the economy that is taking a toll on the casino industry nationally.

Sands spokesman Ron Reese says problems in Nevada and China wouldn't impair its ability to invest in Texas, in large part because even if gambling is legalized there licenses wouldn't be up for grabs until at least March 2011.

Also, gambling operators seeking to do business in a large, untapped market like Texas would likely attract plenty of outside investment.

"There are a lot of different dynamics to how you could do something like that," Reese said.

Gambling interests have pressed for casinos in Texas for several legislative sessions, but they've always hit road blocks in this conservative state. This year may be no different, in part because Texas legislators aren't desperate for new money sources.

Those who want casinos say Texans are already gambling, but they're going to out-of-state casinos. Gambling proponents want to keep that cash in Texas and use some of the casino taxes on needs like college scholarships and road building.

"We have loads and loads of buses going across the state lines, airplanes filled with constituents of yours and mine going to Las Vegas," said Rep. Chente Quintanilla, an El Paso Democrat.

Opponents, including the Baptist Christian Life Commission, argue that casinos suck money out of local economies and don't produce the economic benefits they promise.

Review-Journal writer Benjamin Spillman contributed to this report.