American Roulettes: Fight Over Casino Slots

American Roulettes
Fight Over Casino Slots

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American Roulettes - Fight Over Casino Slots Heats Up

An initiative to ban casino slot machines in the state could gain a
wealthy ally in the wake of legislative support for a plan to open
a tribally owned racetrack casino in Washington County.

Casinos No!, the Portland-based group that
managed to come up with $3 million to defeat an Indian casino
proposal in 2003, on Wednesday sent a letter to members asking
whether they would contribute to a campaign to repeal the law
allowing slot machines at the states harness racing tracks .This is
precisely what we were concerned about, Casinos No! spokeswoman Val
Landry said after the Legislatures Legal and Veterans Affairs
Committee voted 9-2 on Wednesday to double the number of slots in
the state to 3,000. Washington County marks a major expansion of
gambling. The bill, LD 1573, would allow the Passamaquoddy Tribe to
operate as many as 1,500 slots at a racetrack on or near its
reservations. An amendment adopted Wednesday would require local
approval of the project. LD 1573 now heads to the House and Senate
for consideration.

The bill imitates legislation
passed last year after voters approved casino slots at the states
two commercial racetracks in Bangor and Scarborough. Bangor voters
gave the needed local approval to the plan, making Bangor Raceway
the only site eligible to house the 1,500 slots allowed under
current law. As it stands, No Slots for ME!, a loosely organized
group behind the repeal effort, has collected only about half of
the 50,519 signatures needed to force a November 2006 vote .The
group, which reportedly has little in the way of funds, has until
Sept. 28, 2005, to submit its petitions to the Secretary of States
Office.

The possible entry of Casinos No!, and
its fund-raising capacity, into the repeal effort worried some
Bangor officials, one of whom blamed the Washington County bill for
fanning the oppositions flames. I think people are supportive [of
the casino slots], but I think they want to see how Bangor works
once its up and running, City Councilor Dan Tremble said Wednesday,
calling the tribes plan premature. Passamaquoddy Rep. Fred Moore
III, the sponsor of LD 1573, said he was not surprised by Casinos
No! weighing in on the debate. But he called the southern Maine
groups effort misguided and ill-conceived.

For a
group that dislikes casino gambling, they sure are taking a big
gamble by putting this before voters again, considering they have
already supported it, Moore said, noting the 2003 vote in favor of
casino slots at harness racing tracks. We dont believe the people
of Maine are opposed to this .There are segments that are, but I
dont know how many of them have actually been to Washington County,
he said. The Passamaquoddy plan appears to have broad support in
Washington County, with its entire delegation signing on to Moores
bill. Its backers say the plan can deliver a much-needed economic
boost to the county Maines poorest and a prime chance to capture
tourist dollars from the Canadian Maritimes. Critics, such as
Landry of Casinos No!, say the casino slots will have the opposite
effect, and sentence the region to a future of low-paying jobs and
gambling-related ills, including bankruptcies.

The strong committee vote is expected to
strengthen the bills chances in the full Legislature, where leaders
already have expressed support. The bills toughest hurdle in the
State House could lie in Gov. John Baldacci, who opposes the
measure but has stopped short of threatening a veto. In other
gambling news, the Penobscot Nation opted Wednesday to withdraw its
bill to allow slot machines at its bingo hall on Indian Island.

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