Local risk takers in Monroe County prompted an increase in local video gaming revenue for yet another year, providing revenue for area businesses as well as tax funds which are put toward a range of uses.

At the state level, Illinois saw a total of nearly $35 billion played on its 49,000 video gambling terminals. The total amount won was roughly $31.8 billion, resulting in a net wagering activity and net terminal income – or NTI – of $3.2 billion.

The amount “played” in video gambling refers to the total volume of wagers made rather than just initial money deposited.

In Illinois, 35 percent of a terminal’s revenue is put toward tax, with five-sixths going to the state’s Capitol Projects Fund and the remaining sixth staying local as it’s put into the Local Government Video Gaming Distributive Fund.

Statewide, a total of $1.1 billion was made in tax revenue, with $955 million going to the state and $160 million staying in local municipalities.

Zooming in to Monroe County, Waterloo again saw the most gaming activity with its 116 terminals divided amongst 21 establishments.

Up from last year, Waterloo saw an NTI of $6.8 million as $75.6 million was played and $68.8 million was won.

Ruby’s, 949 Illinois Route 3, provided the most winnings for its lucky patrons once again this year, with players earning $7.5 million across the many games played. A total of $2.1 million came out of these six terminals.

Considering NTI among Waterloo’s gaming establishments, Ruby’s came in on top with an NTI of $723,455 and was followed by Motomart, 409 Illinois Route 3, at $712,842; Huck’s, 884 Illinois Route 3, at $645,915; Randy’s Double R Bar, 107 S. Main Street, at $577,086 and Debbie’s Slots & Gaming Lounge, 742 N. Market Street, at $513,744.

Waterloo’s video gambling garnered $2.4 million in tax revenue, with $2 million going to the state and $345,537 staying in town.

Columbia likewise saw an increase in gaming activity with its 14 establishments and 83 terminals resulting in an NTI of $5.8 million.

The amount played in Columbia totalled $66.4 million while the amount won was $60.6 million.

The terminals at Top Shooters, 531 Old Route 3, proved to be the most lucrative in town with $8.7 million won and $2.4 million coming out of the machines.

Top Shooters ended the year with an NTI of $766,518. B&D’s Slots of Fun at 950 Columbia Centre Drive followed with $712,201. In third was Tiny’s Pub & Grill, 602 N. Main Street, at $596,090, with The Office Gaming, 310 Southport Drive, at $586,260 and Big Al’s Slots, 127 W. Locust Street, at $549,917.

Columbia’s NTI tax totalled $2 million. Of that, $1.7 went to the state and $295,110 went back to the municipality.

Though the numbers are much smaller for the county’s largest village, Valmeyer’s video gambling also saw an increase among its nine terminals split between a pair of businesses.

The total wagering activity for Valmeyer amounted to $168,640 as folks at the machines played $2.4 million and won $2.2 million.

Corner Pub at 602 S. Meyer Avenue beat out Mike’s Service & Convenience at 522 S. Meyer Ave. in both winnings and NTI.

The former had $1.4 million won and $432,424 coming out of the machines throughout the year.

Corner Pub’s NTI totalled $94,667 while Mike’s stood at $73,973.

Valmeyer’s gaming tax totaled $59,024, with $50,459 going to the state and $8,565 sticking with the village.

The five establishments in the unincorporated parts of Monroe County diverge from the municipalities, with net wagering activity actually decreasing.

With 26 terminals across five businesses, the county saw $10.3 million played and $9.4 million won, resulting in an NTI of $878,667.

Midwest Petroleum Company, 3745 Illinois Route 3 near Red Bud, had the most amount won among its patrons with $3.2 million while $934,514 came out of the terminals.

Midwest Petroleum Company also boasted the highest NTI at $320,294, followed by The Silo at Route 3, 6180 Illinois Route 3, at $279,486; Crazy Train Saloon & Grill, 5237 Kaskaskia Road, at $128,373; Freeda’s On Main, 2071 Main Street in Renault, at $108,804 and Dreamland Palace, 3043 Illinois Route 156, at $41,711.

County gaming taxes totalled $307,559, with $262,963 going to the state and $44,596 to the county itself.

Video gambling tax revenue is put toward different purposes in each municipality.

As previously reported, the county itself puts this revenue into the general fund while Columbia uses its tax money primarily to improve its parks.

Waterloo has largely put its gaming revenue toward downtown beautification efforts, including a number of grants for local businesses – though some funds in the past few years were also provided to the Waterloo Park District to assist with payment for the Waterloo Community Splash Pad.

For some time now, Waterloo has also used gaming revenue to assist local nonprofits with a range of development projects.

Waterloo Alderman Kyle Buettner, who led the effort to add this particular usage to the city’s video gambling revenue, said he felt it was important to put the money to good use as the city was receiving more and more each year.

“That fund kept getting bigger and bigger, and I wanted to try to help out local nonprofits,” Buettner said. “Like the history museum, they just don’t have a lot of money coming in.”

Alongside the Monroe County History Museum’s construction of an outbuilding, Buettner recalled a grant also being provided to Caritas Family Solutions– then Human Support Services – to assist with elements of a 2024 renovation as well as funds given to the Waterloo Sports Association for field, dugout and shading projects.

He noted these city grants have some strict limits, the largest being that funds must be put toward a specific development project or construction rather than paying for a program or service.

Buettner remarked that these funds might dry up in the future and thus the city shouldn’t come to rely on them – though they can be put to good use while they’re still coming in.

“The way I look at it, it’s a revenue stream that wasn’t there 20 years ago,” Buettner said. “It might not always be there. The city shouldn’t count on this to pay our bills. We should be using this money to give it back to the community in some ways.”