Casino operator Caesars Entertainment is balking at paying an extra $50m in fees to the state of Indiana in connection with its $1.7b purchase of two Indiana racinos.

Last November, Caesars announced a deal to pay $1.7b for two Centaur Gaming properties in Indiana; the Hoosier Park casino in Anderson and the Indiana Grand casino in Shelbyville. Both venues include racetrack operations in addition to traditional casino gaming options.

But Caesars is now trying to get out of paying an additional $50m in transfer fees for the casino licenses. Indiana law requires the initial casino license holder to pay the fee if it sells a controlling interest in the gamine venue.

There are some exceptions to this rule, such as if the transfer occurs as the result of the license holder filing for bankruptcy. Centaur did file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2010, and the subsequent restructuring saw the Hoosier Park license transferred to a new entity that was set up to oversee Centaur’s businesses.