Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board reports record-breaking $520.9 million in revenue for May 2024. (Image: Jeffrey Isaac Greenberg 5+ / Alamy)

The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) reported Tuesday that the state’s gaming industry generated $520,997,868 in revenue in May 2024, a total that marked a substantial year-over-year increase for the state.

Pennsylvania casinos had collected $479.4 million in May 2023, making this May’s haul an 8.68 percent increase over the previous year.

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Online Gambling Powers Pennsylvania Revenue Surge

The PGCB revenue totals include casino winnings, online gambling on casino sites, sports betting, video gaming terminals (VGTs) and fantasy sports, among other revenue streams. 

The biggest overall contributor was Hollywood Casino at Penn National Race Course, which brought in $81.7 million in revenue, up nearly 10 percent over May 2023. 

Valley Forge Casino Resort was close behind at $79.6 million, up almost 24 percent year-over-year and threatening to soon surpass Hollywood as the biggest revenue generators in the state.

In total, 15 of the 18 casinos that were in business a year ago saw revenues increase in May. Along with Valley Forge, Harrah’s Philadelphia (up 20.32 percent), Parx Shippensburg (up 20.36 percent), and The Casino at Nemacolin (up 38.07 percent) saw the largest gains. Only Parx Casino (down 3.56 percent), Mount Airy Casino Resort (down 6.86 percent) and Mohegan Pennsylvania (down 11.45 percent) saw losses compared to their 2023 numbers.

As in many states, the increase in revenue was primarily powered by online gambling. Overall, iGaming slots and table game revenues were up to $174.1 million for May, up from $141 million in May 2023—an increase of about 23.5 percent.

Sports betting was also a strong point for Pennsylvania in May. Overall, revenue from sportsbooks was up more than 7.5 percent year-over-year to $41.1 million. Those profits came off $591.9 million in handle for the month, which pushed the lifetime handle for the state to more than $30 billion since launching in late 2018. A full 94 percent of sports betting revenues came from online sportsbooks in May.

Skill Games Could Add New Wrinkle to Pennsylvania Gaming Landscape

Despite the widespread success, there were a couple of soft spots in the PGCB report. Online poker continues to struggle, bringing in just $2.27 million in revenue, down more than nine percent compared to May 2023. Fantasy sports contests were also down 5.19 percent to just $1.15 million in revenue for the month.

The revenue numbers come at a time when Pennsylvania is considering the regulation of so-called skill games, which mimic slot machines but feature some skill-based elements in bonus rounds or elsewhere. Currently, the games operate in a legal grey area, but could be brought into the fold by the state legislature.

In a Wednesday op-ed in the Erie-Times News, former Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell said that if regulated, skill games should be taxed at the same 52 percent rate as other slot machines and VGTs in the state.

“I am alarmed to hear that several current members of the General Assembly are proposing a disastrous tax giveaway that I believe would benefit deep-pocketed, out-of-state gaming interests who have been flooding Pennsylvania with political campaign contributions,” Rendell wrote. 

“Rather than stick with the time-tested 52 percent tax rate that has served Pennsylvania well for nearly two decades, these legislators want to kill our golden goose and cut these out-of-state interests a sweetheart deal that would tax their machines somewhere between a laughable 16 percent, or a clearly non-uniform 34 percent. This is the definition of fiscal irresponsibility, in my opinion.”

 Rendell served as governor of Pennsylvania from 2003 through 2011, during which time he presided over the passage of the Gaming Act, which brought casino gambling to the state.