Ohio's four proposed casinos would hand over one-third of their revenue to counties, school districts and other units of government as taxes, a number that opponents say is too low.

But the fine print of the casino proposal hides a number that's even lower -- 0 percent, opponents charged yesterday.

Their argument rests on language in the constitutional amendment that voters will consider in November to allow casinos in Columbus, Toledo, Cincinnati and Cleveland.

The amendment would impose a 33 percent tax on "gross casino revenue," which is defined as the amount of money "exchanged for the purchase of chips, tokens, tickets, electronic cards or similar objects" minus total winnings.

But what about cash that's not exchanged for anything: simply fed into a gambling device as bills or coins?

That would be exempt from taxation, say leaders of TruthPAC, which is leading the campaign to defeat the casino proposal, Issue 3 on the November statewide ballot.

At a news conference yesterday, TruthPAC spokeswoman Sandy Theis called the cash exemption a "gaping loophole in the proposal."

Backers of Issue 3 say counties and other units of government would receive $651 million a year in casino taxes. The issue has the support of the Ohio Fraternal Order of Police, the state's largest police union.

Issue 3 spokesman Bob Tenenbaum insisted that the proposed casinos would not use cash except to exchange for vouchers, which would mean they'd pay taxes.

"Cash wagering is an anachronism," Tenenbaum said. "Nobody uses it."

State Rep. Louis W. Blessing Jr., R-Cincinnati, said the wording of the constitutional amendment does envision cash wagering.

The amendment defines casino gaming as wagers that use "money, casino credit or any representative of value."

"This amendment not only does not prohibit cash wagering, it mandates it," Blessing said at TruthPAC's news conference.

Attorney General Richard Cordray's office has not been asked to sort out the conflicting claims, nor will it until it receives a formal request, Cordray spokesman Ted Hart said.

Also yesterday, the pro-Issue 3 campaign announced that it's forming a "truth squad" to counter claims by TruthPAC. Under the banner of the Cops for Casinos campaign -- a name the Issue 3 committee took on after securing the police union's endorsement -- the truth squad will debunk "false and misleading information" spread by opponents, according to a press release.

The pro-Issue 3 campaign also enlisted a high-profile political backer: Robert T. Bennett, who stepped down as longtime Ohio Republican chairman early this year.

The campaign is paying Bennett, 70, to work his network of GOP contacts around the state in support of the casino proposal. Bennett said yesterday that he's mostly reaching out to the heads of county Republican parties.

"It's not a savior, but it's a development tool for the major cities," said Bennett, who splits his time between homes in Cleveland and Columbus.

At TruthPAC's news conference, Franklin County Commissioner John O'Grady, a Democrat, said the proposed Columbus casino would detract from other businesses in the Arena District.

jnash@dispatch.com