POLITICS: Albany must SAY NO to the online-casino temptation

Uh-oh: The New York Times last week dropped a Page One story marveling at the huge revenue windfalls Pennsylvania and New Jersey have reaped from legalizing the “casino on your phone” — surely pushing a truly terrible idea to the top of Albany’s agenda.

In the seven states that allow full-on online gambling — slots and all — the government’s take dwarfs its income from taxing online sports “gaming.”

Pennsylvania rakes in $100 million a month; Jersey, $50 million.

How can Albany resist betting that it’ll do far better from “i-Gaming”?

And never mind that legal gambling is a highly regressive revenue-raiser, taking a far, far bigger chunk of low-income folks’ paychecks than it does from fat cats.

Nor that gambling addiction ruins countless lives even when you have to go to a brick-and-mortar casino to truly chase the dragon.

Then again, New York lawmakers are already hooked on the jackpots of legalized “gaming.”

Just this month, the state Gaming Facility Location Board approved three casinos for New York City — two in Queens and one in The Bronx; the hope is that these will be bigger cash cows than the earlier upstate ones.

(If nothing else, the long process for OK’ing casinos in the city generated vast campaign donations for every New York pol willing to smile on the idea — starting with then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who got the whole sick scheme rolling years ago.)

Just by coincidence, state Sen. Joe Addabo (D-Queens), chair of the Senate Racing, Gaming and Wagering Committee, raised the idea of legalizing i-Gaming shortly after the downstate casinos were OK’d and Gov. Kathy Hochul signed in law his bill banning “sweepstakes casinos,” online sites that only let you gamble with virtual money. 

Addabbo was a key player in New York’s legalizing of online sports betting; he’s long pushed i-Gaming to provide Albany more cash.

Oh, he also says it will keep New York competitive with other states — without mentioning that the “competition” is to see who can best bleed the most vulnerable.

Addabo throws in mention of addressing problem gambling as though it were a public-service announcement.

The i-Gaming temptation hits when the Legislature will be more eager than usual to find fresh sources of lucre: Albany’s facing a cumulative budget gap of $34.3 billion through Fiscal Year 2029, plus pressure to fund Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani’s $10 billion or more in “free stuff.”

Tax hikes can only raise so much from the nation’s already-highest-taxed residents; actually cutting state spending is anathema to New York’s Democratic leaders, especially when they need the support of all the tax-sucking special interests in the coming election year.

If you think it’s obscene for progressives to exploit the poor, start giving your state reps an earful — or else New York’s so-called “leaders” won’t be able to resist this temptation.