Tax revenue collected from Vicksburg’s four casinos and paid to local government this past fiscal year surpassed that of a year ago.

But as coastal casinos decimated by Hurricane Katrina reopened for business as the year progressed, casinos up and down the Mississippi River seem to have settled back into historical market trends.

Figures released last week show the City of Vicksburg banking $480,004 in September, down sharply from previous months, bringing the city’s take for 2005-06 to $8,107,785, up more than $1.2 million from 2004-05.

Warren County collected $224,677 in September that brought its take to $3,452,819 for 2005-06, up nearly $500,000 from 2004-05.

Tax revenue casinos pay to the Mississippi State Tax Commission provide the best way to gauge how the industry is performing. So far, the state has received a shade over $1.6 billion in calendar year 2006, still behind the pace set in the first nine months of 2005.

Mississippi took in just less than $13.9 million in tax revenue in September, up slightly from $11.7 million in August.

Much of that came from the steadily recovering Gulf Coast market, which enjoyed a $100 million month for the first time since the deadly storm. The number of reopened casinos has grown to nine, with those businesses raking in $109.8 million in September. The tenth, Silver Slipper in Hancock County, is set to open next month, an official with the Mississippi Gaming Commission said Friday.

Two casinos operated by the Mississippi Band of Choctaws near Philadelphia are not required to disclose revenue because they are exempt from state taxes.

Conversely, the casinos on the river reported $131.2 million in gross revenue to the Mississippi State Tax Commission for September, down about $4 million from August. Except for July, with its major tourist holiday on the Fourth, casinos along the river have shown a gradual slowdown in revenue since February when only three coastal casinos had reopened.

In Vicksburg and Warren County, officials still expect collections to remain steady for 2006-07, providing about $10 million.

Of a 3.2 percent tax on wagers the casinos collect, 10 percent goes to schools, 25 percent to Warren County and 65 percent to the City of Vicksburg. A second revenue tax is a .8 percent share of the state’s 8 percent revenue tax. It is split based on population proportions between Vicksburg and Warren County.

The four casinos in Vicksburg also pay the city $150 per gaming position per year, called a device tax. Paid about every other month, that fee has generated $733,440 for the city this year.

The casinos also pay about $2 million in property taxes to the city, county and Vicksburg Warren School District based on the value of their casinos, hotels and other property.

In the city of Vicksburg, tax money collected from the casinos is usually rolled into the general fund. But in Warren County, it is treated as funds separate and apart from the general operating fund.

The county estimates $3.8 million in gaming funds will come in for 2006-07, much of which is earmarked for sheriff’s department equipment, paving and anti-erosion projects.

Unbudgeted expenses such as property purchases usually cause county supervisors to tap the gaming funds. The former city maintenance building at First North and Clay streets that will be the new home of emergency dispatch and new voting machines was paid for using gaming money.

The Vicksburg casino market started developing when Isle of Capri opened in August 1993. Of four original developments, Ameristar and Rainbow remain; Harrah’s sold to Horizon and the Isle was sold to Legends Gaming. The Isle’s name was changed DiamondJacks Casino and Hotel in July.

Two additional casino projects have cleared most local and state regulatory hurdles leading to construction, but have not started building.