Mainebiz

V O L . X X V I N O. X X I X D E C E M B E R 1 4 , 2 0 2 0 6 Additional relief for brewers being sought U.S. Sens. Angus King, I-Maine, and Susan Collins, R-Maine, have joined a bipartisan push to keep in place existing federal tax relief for the growing craft beverage industry — aid brewers say they can't afford to lose. A Dec. 1 letter addressed to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and Minority Leader Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., makes a case for extending the 2017 Craft Beverage Modernization and Tax Reform Act beyond this year. e provisions apply to brewers of craft beer as well as craft distillers, winer- ies, cideries and meaderies. Without a new bill, they face a significant increase in their federal excise taxes starting on Jan. 1. N O T E W O R T H Y S T A T E W I D E U.S. Sens. Susan Collins and Angus King announced that Maine organiza- tions received a total of $1.8 million to restore, increase and strengthen coastal communities, as well as en- hance habitats for fish and wildlife. Recipients of the funding, awarded through the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation's and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Coastal Resilience Fund, were the B U S I N E S S M A I N E Business news from around the state S T A T E W I D E Maine Department of Marine Resourc- es, $1.6 million; the Southern Maine Planning and Development Commis- sion, $130,000; and the Downeast Salmon Federation, $107,780. Gov. Janet Mills announced that $5.6 million in CARES Act Coronavirus Relief Fund state money will be used to fund the construction of permanent internet infrastructure called ConnectKidsNow! that will bring high-speed broadband to more than 730 students across rural Maine. The administration also said it will dedicate $536,000 to extend home- delivered meals to older Mainers and caregivers, ensuring food and nutrition for Maine people staying home during the pandemic. Priciest ZIP codes dominated by southern Maine New data show that the number of ZIP code areas in Maine with expen- sive real estate has nearly doubled in the past year. at's one of the findings of a national analysis conducted by real estate blog PropertyShark.com. In 2019, the median home price in four Maine ZIPs exceeded $500,000, according to the annual study. is year, the number has grown to seven. As it did last year, the ZIP code for Cumberland Foreside had the highest median price within Maine, at $768,000. No. 2 was Ogunquit, ZIP code 03907, with a median price of $654,000. Cape Elizabeth, ZIP code 04107, came in third at $595,000. Other communities in Cumberland and York counties rounded out most of the top 10. e Hancock County town of Mount Desert, ZIP code 04660, ranked No. 10, with a median price of $458,000. N O T E W O R T H Y S O U T H E R N Central Maine Power said it will match any donation up to $10,000 until the end of the year to Full Plates Full Potential in Portland to help ensure chil- dren have access to nutritious school meals throughout the holiday season. OPRC, a marine energy company based in Portland, announced that it received $3.6 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Energy for a project which proposes a novel hydrokinetic NM NY MI ME RI FL WV IL DE NV 0% −80% −60% −40% −20% −71.91% ($53.9M) −66.88% ($683.0M) −57.99% ($456.5M) −54.91% ($49.8M) −51.18% ($248.7M) −48.69% ($223.6M) −42.04% ($269.9M) −40.93% ($1.3B) −40.14% ($197.4M) −37.92% ($5.6B) S O U R C E : Safe Betting Sites CASINO REVENUE DECLINE BY STATE, JAN.–SEPT. B R I E F Shutdown takes a toll on Maine's casino industry B y P e t e r V a n A l l e n O x f o r d — Maine's casinos had the fourth-largest drop in revenue among states with gaming halls, with a 55% decline. A report by Safe Betting Sites, a London-based gaming research firm, shows that casinos in 24 states that allow gaming had a revenue decline of $12 billion, a 36.5% drop through the first three quarters of the year. Total revenue recorded was $21.6 billion, down from $33.99 billion in the same period last year. Maine's casinos were shut down from mid-March until the second week of July. Since then, they've operated with increased sanitation procedures and social distancing guide- lines, while reducing the number of people allowed inside. In the nine months ending Sept. 30, Maine's two casi- nos, Oxford Casino and Hollywood Casino (in Bangor), had revenue of $49.76 million, a decline of 54.91%. More detail on the casino numbers is available at the state Gambling Control Unit website. Oxford Casino is owned by Louisville, Ky.-based Churchill Downs Inc. (Nasdaq: CHDN), while Hollywood Casino is owned by Wyomissing , Pa.- based Penn National Gaming Inc. (Nasdaq: PENN). How the states stack up New Mexico saw the biggest revenue decline, of 71.91%, fol- lowed by New York, down 66.88%; Michigan, down 57.99%; Maine, down 54.91%; and Rhode Island, down 51.18%. "It is worth mentioning that the casino industry in the United States has been at the forefront of implementing rigorous, innovative protocols that have allowed the vast majority of entities to reopen in different states," the report said. "With business returning to some normalcy, sportsbooks are witnessing an increased action translat- ing to a steady recovery path of the industry." Without stimulus checks the losses might have been worse, the report said. Maine's casinos were shut down from mid- March until the second week of July. Since then, they've operated with increased sanitation procedures and social distancing guidelines. Data collected by Safe Betting Sites, a London-based gaming research firm, showed that Maine casinos had the fourth- largest drop in revenue among states with gaming halls. S O U T H E R N

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