Empress Casino Joliet Corp. v. Giannoulias

Chief Justice Thomas and Justices Freeman, Fitzgerald, Kilbride, Garman, and Karmeier concurred in the judgment and opinion.

OPINION

In this case, we are asked to determine the constitutionality of Public Act 94 — 804 (the Act), which imposed, for a two-year period beginning on the effective date of the amendatory Act, a 3% surcharge on the four riverboat casinos in Illinois that had adjusted gross receipts (AGR) of over $200 million in the calendar year 2004. The remaining five riverboat casinos, all of which had AGRs below $200 million, were not subject to the surcharge. The Act provided that…