Area lawmakers oppose casinos in Ky.

A Republican Louisville lawmaker wants Kentucky to use revenues from casino gambling to get out of its pension crisis, but local legislators are not supporting Representative Jerry Miller’s proposal.

Miller believes bringing casinos to Kentucky could generate $250 million in new revenue each year, but Representative Walker Thomas of Hopkinsville believes a lot of that money would just be redirected from other discretionary spending by families in the state.

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Senator Whitney Westerfield agrees it would generate some new revenue, but says it would come at the cost of Kentucky’s poorest.

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Representative Myron Dossett agrees and says tax reform is a more viable option.

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Representative Lynn Bechler says most of his constituents in Christian, Caldwell, Livingston and Crittenden counties don’t support it and he won’t either.

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In the unlikely event the General Assembly did approve a casino bill, Governor Matt Bevin has long been an opponent to expanded gaming and would almost certainly veto the legislation.