New stance on gambling

INDIANAPOLIS -- Gov. Frank O'Bannon said Thursday he may be able to accept permanently docked riverboat casinos if the legislation includes limits on the number of slot machines and card games available to patrons.\nSince taking office in 1997, O'Bannon has repeatedly said he opposes dockside gambling because he considers it an expansion of gambling.\nDockside gambling is a term long considered to mean riverboats could remain permanently moored so patrons could come and go as they wish.\nBut Thursday, O'Bannon said he considers dockside to mean barge operations -- potentially much larger casinos that would not be able to cruise on waterways. It is a distinction he has not publicly discussed before.\nO'Bannon now says he would be willing to consider a bill that permits riverboats on Lake Michigan and the Ohio River to remain docked, provided the legislation does not create larger casinos.\nMany lawmakers and political observers believe dockside gambling will be part of any final package approved to address the state's ailing economy and lagging tax revenues.\nThe increased business at Indiana casinos as a result of relaxed boarding schedules would bring in about $111 million extra in wagering taxes a year, according to the Legislative Services Agency.\nThe Senate already has approved legislation allowing dockside gambling, which is sometimes called "flexible boarding." That proposal would not allow barge casinos.