Taxes from casinos and retail sports betting establishments in Michigan go straight to the School Aid Fund every month. Those from mobile betting and fantasy sports go to the fund at the end of the fiscal year after necessary allocations. Overall, Michigan collected $365 million in taxes in 2022. Gambling has become the state’s greatest source of tax revenue and funding income.
Tax revenue from legal gambling
Funding for Michigan schools initially came primarily through local sources. After, this was an era of state funding of education. In 1997, the Michigan Gaming Control and Revenue Act was signed into law. In 2019, a series of state laws opened the state to legal, regulated mobile sports betting and fantasy contests.
Today, MI online casinos are setting record revenue marks. Online casinos contributed over $289 million in state taxes and more than $77 million in city taxes in 2022. They finished last year incredibly strong, and the growth isn’t slowing down. Sports betting isn’t showing quite the same growth, but it is still a big source of revenue for operators and tax revenue for the state.
Michigan Gaming Control Board
The Gaming Control Board announced that it has collected $2.5 billion in taxes to support K-12 schools in the 25 years of its existence. The School Aid Fund is the largest recipient of gambling tax revenue.
The three Detroit casinos generated nearly over $1 billion in revenue outside of sports wagering for 2022. These three retail casinos represent the most gaming revenue for the state. Michigan residents who enjoy playing popular casino games are indirectly benefiting the education sector.
The money invested in education is critical to developing the future workforce of Michigan. Executive Director of the MGCB, Henry Williams, said he and his colleagues were proud to play their role in helping Michigan schools by collecting taxes on legal, regulated gaming.
The MGCB feels an obligation to support problem gamblers in the state as gambling continues to grow. It has two self-exclusion programs for problem gamblers. Members of the public can ban themselves from Detroit casinos. They have the option of remaining on the Disassociated Persons List or opting out after five years.
Education in Michigan
Michigan as a state shows it believes in the importance of education by how much it spends on it. It spends one of the highest amounts in the U.S. with only Alaska spending more. There is currently so much money flowing into the state Treasury that Michigan has a budget surplus. Michigan’s Governor, Gretchen Whitmer, wants to boost pupil funding for public schools, introduce a new tutoring program, and broadly expand state-funded preschool.
Her proposal would draw on $18 billion from the School Aid Fund and other resources. She proposes that the state raise the pupil funding base for public schools. She also wants to offer free preschool to every 4-year-old in Michigan within four years. Her proposal builds on a plan to get Michigan kids back on track with individual tutoring, after-school support, and other personalized learning supports.
