NATCHEZ — Magnolia Bluffs Casino has filed a court injunction to prevent the City of Natchez from publicly disclosing the amount of gaming taxes the casino pays to the city.

The injunction was filed in Adams County Chancery Court Nov. 28 to stop the city from releasing the gaming taxes the casino pays. Having that information would easily allow someone to determine the amount of gaming revenue the casino is producing.

Unite Here! Local 2262, the Tunica chapter of a national union for hospitality and gaming workers, filed a public records request with the city clerk’s office for the information in early November.

City Clerk Melissa Hawk notified Magnolia Bluffs of the records request Nov. 14 via email, saying that before she is legally allowed to release the information, the city must receive permission from the casino per state statute 25-61-9.

Casino attorney Tony Heidelberg said the injunction was filed to protect the casino’s proprietary information. The city is essentially a “bystander” in the matter, Heidelberg said.

If Unite Here! decides to pursue the requested information, Heidelberg said the casino will defend the proprietary information in court.

Mississippi Gaming Commission Deputy Director Jay McDaniel cited state statute 75-76-87 as making specific information regarding the individual casinos confidential information.

“(The gaming commission) reports regional information, not specific information about individual casinos,” McDaniel said.

Heidelberg said since the information is not available from the state, Unite Here! went to the city in an effort to obtain it.

The state reports gaming information regionally in an effort to protect the individual financial information of casinos.

Heidelberg said the casino is neither familiar with Unite Here! nor why the organization might want the information.

The union’s public records request did not specify the reason. A reason for the request for information is not required by law.

Requests for comment from Unite Here! were not returned.