Mashantucket tribe touts $1B economic impact as Bridgeport casino efforts ramp up

The Foxwoods Resort Casino had a $1.1 billion impact on the state”™s economy in 2017, according to a new report issued by its operator, the Mashantucket Pequot tribe.

The timing of the report ”“ which also says that the facility has drawn 300 million visitors since it opened in 1992 ”“ would appear to be particularly salient, following as it does this week”™s announcement of the Connecticut Jobs and Revenue Act. If passed, the CJRA would pave the way for the Mashantuckets and the Mohegan tribe, which runs the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, to build and operate a casino in Bridgeport, where they would be allowed to conduct sports wagering through mobile applications and online.

The report, “Economic Impact of the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation” by economist Jonathan Taylor, states that Foxwoods employed 7,558 workers as of October 2018 — second to Mohegan Sun”™s 8,400 but greater than other nearby casinos like the MGM Springfield and Empire City at Yonkers Raceway.

Mohegan Sun is the 11^th largest employer in the state, the report said, with Foxwoods 12^th.

Under the terms of intergovernmental agreements with Connecticut, the two tribes have paid the state nearly $8 billion over the past 25 years, the report said. The state”™s realized revenue from the tribes in the fiscal year ended June 30, 2018 ($273 million) “is almost a third the size of the $921 million that Connecticut realized in corporation tax revenue that year,” it added.