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r <br /> t , <br /> 020 SE EVERET'L'MALL WAY EVERE'IT. WA 98208 425-212-2200 <br /> f <br /> January 6, 2010 <br /> Everett City Council <br /> 2930 Wetmore Avenue#9A <br /> Everett, WA. 98201 <br /> Re: Gambling Tax Rates <br /> Dear Council Members, <br /> We at The Club Casino would like to put forth a proposal to lower the City's Gambling Tax Rate to a more <br /> viable tax based on an adjusted gross revenue that we have attached to this request. Since we opened our <br /> business in 2006, we have seen five other casinos in the city fail due in part to their business practices but also <br /> due to the high tax rate imposed on these businesses by the City. A 10%rate is extremely high for any start up <br /> business let alone a mini casino with a tribal casino within a few miles, one that does not pay any taxes to a <br /> government entity. <br /> The 10% rate might be a reasonable rate if it was imposed on gross profit rather that gross revenue. Unlike any <br /> other business in the City we have staffing requirements that are imposed on us by the state that mandates a <br /> minimum number of employees that we have to have working at any one time just to open our doors.Where a <br /> tavern or mini market can operate with one employee during slow times, we are required to have 9 employees <br /> just to open one table game. On days that we do not"win"while we may not have to pay 10%tax for that day, <br /> we still have to pay our employees for the time they have worked thereby effectively increasing the amount we <br /> have to make just to catch up and break even. <br /> Since we have opened for business we have seen other Counties and City's reduce the tax rate they are charging <br /> businesses like ours,the cities of Lacey, Lake Stevens, Chehalis, Fife,Long Beach, Mabton, Shelton and <br /> Ruston to name a few. They have seen that the rate they were charging was too high for these businesses to be <br /> able to continue in their area. Businesses that employ many people and contribute through their payroll many <br /> dollars to their communities. At The Club Casino,we average a biweekly payroll of over$50,000.00 which if <br /> viewed with an economist eye and the trickledown theory equals approximately 7 times that amount or <br /> $350,000.00 every two weeks or an average of approximately$800,000.00 every month into the Everett <br /> economy. <br />