Casinos bet $19M at Statehouse

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - Indiana's gambling industry is being tested anew in the Statehouse as it seeks concessions from lawmakers amid new competition and declining collections.

The state's 11 casinos and two racetracks with slots have spent more than $19 million pressing lawmakers for expansions and breaks in the past dozen years. The Associated Press compiled the spending from reports filed with the Indiana Lobby Registration Commission.

They have won some big expansions, including the permanent docking of riverboat casinos and the placement of 4,000 slot machines at the tracks.

But they have also lost some big bets. They spent $5 million in the 2008 and 2009 sessions on an unsuccessful push for tax breaks.

The fate of a Senate bill this year that would allow more expansion is unclear.