By Katie Gorka, Chair, Fairfax GOP
The Virginia Senate Committee on Finance and Appropriations Committee voted 9 to 6 on Tuesday, January 28th, to send Senate bill SB982 on a potential casino in Tysons Corner to the full Senate. If passed by the House of Delegates and signed by Governor Youngkin, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors would then put a referendum on a ballot for residents to decide whether to build a casino in Tysons.
Members of the Fairfax County Republican Committee had a lively debate on Wednesday, January 22nd, over whether to formally oppose the bill. Those speaking in favor of the bill argued that because Republicans are pro-business, we should support the casino. Opponents of the casino argued that not all businesses are equal. Pornography, prostitution, drug sales are also businesses, but they are not good businesses. Opponents identified a range of pitfalls the casino would bring to the Tysons area, including double-digit increases in crime, in an area that has already seen sharp rises in crime and an under-staffed police force, increased traffic congestion, increases in gambling addictions, personal bankruptcies, mental health crises, sex trafficking, and drug use. In the end, The Fairfax GOP passed the resolution to oppose the Tysons Casino with a strong majority.
Area residents are also widely opposed. According to a recent poll: “A survey of 500 likely voters in Fairfax County found widespread opposition to Surovell’s Senate Bill 982. Sixty-four percent of countywide voters said they oppose a casino in Tysons. Voters residing in the census-designated Tysons area were even more opposed at 79%.”
Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell, the Democrat Senator representing Virginia’s 34th District (a safe 20 miles from the site for the proposed casino), who introduced the bill, argues that it will bring revenue to Virginia. But in fact it will drain resources from Fairfax. Only an estimated 30% of the tax revenue generated by the casino would stay in Fairfax, while 70% would go back to Richmond.
Pro-casino advocates argue that Fairfax County has a budget problem. The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors claims to have a $300 million shortfall. Yet rather than look to possible savings (for example, cancelling the absurd COVID memorial) or conducting an audit to search for possible savings, they keep looking for more ways to extract money from residents. Similarly, Fairfax County Public Schools are also complaining about a budget shortfall. But as we recently learned from local lawyer Mark Spooner, they can spend $6.4 million for the salaries of the 52 employees in the “Chief Equity Office” of Fairfax County Public Schools. The Chief Equity Officer alone makes $258,000. On top of that, FCPS spent $142 million on English as a Second Language (ESOL) teachers, up from $91 million in 2019, thanks to Biden’s open border, Fairfax County’s sanctuary policy, and FCPS’s Trust Policy.
When we, as individuals or as families, exceed our income, we make hard choices and cut back. It’s time for Fairfax County to do the same. Building a casino in Tysons only rewards their bad spending habits and risks further increases in crime, sex trafficking and congestion in our county.
To help fight the proposed casino, join the Fairfax GOP.
You can also get involved here: No Casinos Coalition