Many Pennsylvania residents still remember the time when members of the General Assembly and Gov. Ed Rendell promised big property tax relief if casino gambling were approved for the state.

At no time did lawmakers or the governor suggest that, in the future, casino gambling profits, at the expense of property owners, might be used to solve budget shortfalls.

But that's what might be shaping up in connection with what surely will be remembered as the "Budget Crisis of 2009" or the "2009-10 Budget Fiasco" — or "The Year Politicians Made Human Services Agencies Suffer."

House Democratic Whip William DeWeese of Greene County, who has introduced a bill to legalize table games at casinos in this state, has stated that he would be willing to amend his bill to allow table game revenue to be diverted into the state's general fund for three years, rather than use that money to cut property taxes.

In making that announcement, he said he has seen increasing support to include that revenue in the mix needed to erase this year's budget shortfall and to help address budget problems projected for the 2010-11 and 2011-12 fiscal years.

If that diversion of funds were to happen now, presuming that table games will be OK'd, there would be no assurance that lawmakers for 2012-13 would not find an excuse for keeping table games revenue from funding property tax relief.

Lawmakers should keep their promise to constituents needing property tax relief. They should find other ways to deal with the commonwealth's fiscal shortfall.

At the ballot box next year, voters should look unkindly at those lawmakers who support this unacceptable table games revenue proposal.

There never was any doubt since slot machine gambling came to this state that a big push for table games would someday follow. However, it wasn't anticipated that the push would come even before all of the 14 casinos approved under the state's 2004 gambling law were in operation. Nine currently are operating, six racetrack/casinos and three stand-alone casinos.

Now that wait-until-all-14-are-operating plan seems to have been cast aside as visions of more "green" for the barrel of budget red ink has begun consuming the state capital.

A Pittsburgh newspaper has reported that a study done for the casino industry estimates that once all of the state's casinos have table games, at least $165 million in new revenue would be generated yearly.

Joseph Weinert, senior vice president of Spectrum Gaming Group, an industry consultant, said, "From an economic standpoint, Pennsylvania would be able to tap a whole other customer segment that right now is choosing to play in Atlantic City, West Virginia, upstate New York or Las Vegas. There are a lot of people who think playing slot machines is boring, monotonous and not a whole lot of fun."

But as one neighboring state can attest — West Virginia, where there have been several rounds of casino worker layoffs despite table games — such games don't necessarily spell success for casinos' bottom line, especially if slot machine payouts are reduced because of them.

Reduce the slot machine payouts significantly and many players will go elsewhere.

David La Torre, a spokesman for The Meadows Racetrack and Casino in Washington County, told the Pittsburgh newspaper that table games "certainly are not as revenue positive as slot machines." So the money to help any of the casinos meet the added expenses, including labor, associated with table games will have to come out of the pockets of slots players — many of the same people wanting additional property tax relief and who will not get it immediately — or, possibly, ever — if DeWeese's plan succeeds.

If Pennsylvania can't make a go of it now without the added casino revenue from table games, it's probable that it won't be able to do so in future years — with costs continuing to increase and with lawmakers and future governors unable to quench their thirst for higher spending.

Slot machine gambling hasn't been a panacea for the Keystone State and its taxpayers; table games won't be either.

The proposal for table games without property tax benefits is unacceptable, and the plan should be soundly defeated.