But dearest friends, alas! must part. The passing of NYRA

Fred Dicker of the New York Post reports today that Governor Cuomo has given up on trying reforming NYRA and instead will let it go quietly into that good night.  Apparently, the Governor has decided to seek bids for an experienced management company to come in and take over.  This makes sense.  Critics have been complaining about a State run / political NYRA.   This will resolve that issue

The important thing here is the Racing and the Equine industry.  This may be just the way to get that done.

Cuomo, who will sign legislation within days giving the state control of NYRA’s board of directors, plans to seek public bids for a new operator to replace NYRA, a not-for-profit corporation, from for-profit companies with deep experience in the racing and/or entertainment industries, sources said.

A source with firsthand knowledge said it will take several months to draw up the specifics, and bids will likely be solicited by the middle of next year.

“The NYRA model won’t work. It’s flawed, and it’s unable to do the job. Privatizing makes the most sense,’’ said the source.

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/gov_bettor_way_ALg4pY94Jl7I4fjg2K89JM

Judge rules that poker isn’t gambling under federal law

Online players rejoice: ‘Poker is not a crime, it is a game of skill’

OK, while this may seem at first blush to be a big thing in New York, in the end, I do not think it will change the gaming landscape.   While poker may no longer be gambling in New York under Federal Law, I beleive that poker will remain illegal gambling under the New York State Penal Law.

New York defines a "game of chance" any game "whose outcome depends in a material degree upon an element of chance, notwithstanding that skill of the contestants may also be a factor....."  Penal Law Section 225.00. 

But it is a fun ruling anyway.

Larry Neumeister, Associated Press

Tuesday, Aug. 21, 2012 | 6 p.m.

 

NEW YORK — A federal judge ruled Tuesday that poker is more a game of skill than chance and cannot be prosecuted under a law created to stop organized crime families from making millions of dollars from gambling.

The decision by Judge Jack Weinstein in Brooklyn was embraced by advocates of card games pushing to legalize Internet poker in the United States. The judge relied extensively on the findings of a defense expert who analyzed online poker games.

The ruling tossed out a jury's July conviction of a man charged with conspiring to operate an illegal underground poker club, a business featuring Texas Hold'em games run in a warehouse where he also sold electric bicycles. There were no allegations in the case that organized crime was involved or that anything such as money laundering or loansharking occurred.

"Because the poker played on the defendant's premises is not predominately a game of chance, it is not gambling" as defined in the federal law, the judge wrote in a lengthy decision that traced the history of poker and federal laws to combat illegal gambling.

Prosecutors did not immediately respond to a phone message seeking comment.

The judge said his findings will not prevent federal law enforcement authorities from curbing the influence of organized crime because poker games operated through the Mafia can be prosecuted through federal racketeering laws. He said it also does not prevent states from banning card games operated as businesses, which many of them have. He mentioned that state courts that have ruled on the issue are divided as to whether poker constitutes a game of skill, a game of chance, or a mixture of the two.

Defense lawyer Kannan Sundaram had asked the judge to reject the jury verdict against Lawrence
Dicristina on the grounds that the law doesn't apply to the case. Sundaram said Tuesday his client was happy with the decision.

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2012/aug/21/judge-rules-poker-isnt-gambling-under-federal-law/ 

The release of a report on the investigation into thoroughbred fatalities at the Aqueduct Racetrack's inner track from December 2011 to March 2012 has been delayed until after Saturday's running of the Travers Stakes in Saratoga Springs.

The New York Task Force on Racehorse Health and Safety was created in late March at the behest of Gov. Andrew Cuomo to investigate 20 horse deaths that happened during the winter meet at Aqueduct. The four-member task force consisted of retired jockey Jerry Bailey, New York Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association Chairman and CEO Alan Foreman, New Jersey Equine Clinic hospital director Dr. Scott Palmer and Kentucky Horse Racing Commission medical director Dr. Mary Scollay.

http://www.dailygazette.com/weblogs/capital-region-scene/2012/aug/21/aqueduct-horse-death-probe-results-delayed/

In other news, NYRA is tired of having its handle and race attendence placed under the spotlight:

The New York Racing Association has announced that it will no longer release handle and attendance figures at the close of the each racing week following the last race on Saratoga's Monday cards.

http://www.nypost.com/p/blogs/posttime/nyra_changes_figures_release_policy_8xQJy8l75jDeUYzttVwRyK#ixzz24I7UD6Wd

In Massachusetts, MGM is going forward with its' proposal for a Casino in Springfield:

Casino giant MGM Resorts International is going to unveil plans Wednesday for a resort casino in Springfield Massachusetts. 

At a formal announcement top MGM officials plan to release architectural renderings of what is described as a major entertainment complex and provide site tours. Several city councilors have confirmed MGM’s interest in building a casino in a three block area of the south end of downtown.

Its an area where several buildings were damaged by last year’s tornado. Ameristar casinos has also proposed a project in Springfield, and more are expected according Paula Meara, who chairs the city’s casino site committee.

Also competing for the sole western Massachusetts casino license is Mohegan Sun, which has had a project in development for years in Palmer.

The Comptroller's Audit and tid bits

The Comptroller's Audit

Shock of shocks: the Comptroller has found that the VLTs are not increasing attendance of betting at the Harness Tracks.  It has always seemed to me that the purpose of giving the harness tracks the VLT parlors is to provide a subsidy to the equine industry in New York, which not only does not cost the taxpayers anything but also provides significant revenue to the State itself.

Furthermore, New York needed the cover of helping the harness tracks to sell the idea.

As strange as it may sound, twelve years ago the public and the State elected leaders had a hard time envisioning legalized gaming in New York.  In order to make it happen, the State needed a cover that the people could accept.  There was already betting at the tracks and if we do not let them have it, our horse industry will die.  All true.  But it also let the camels nose in under the tent and now we are discussing seven full blown casinos in the State of New York.

But I will tell you where this all came from.  If the Supreme Court and Congress had not authorized Indian casinos, we would not be having this discussion at all.

I have been fairly certain since 1993, when Turning Stone opened, that it would only be a matter of time before the State authorized casinos.  Simply put, the non-Indian community was not going to sit by and allow the Native Americans to have a monopoly on Gaming in the State of New York.

The New York State Comptroller has issued a report concluding that the use of video slots to reverse horse racing's declining popularity does not appear to be helping the tracks, a new audit suggests.

 Audit findings by Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli, and an accompanying evaluation from outgoing Division of the Lottery Director Gordon Medenica, said that despite the advent of video lottery terminals, handle and attendance at horse races are not rebounding at racino facilities. Lawmakers legalized VLTs in 2001, authorizing them only at tracks.

 But on-track betting totals have continued to drop, DiNapoli's audit said. "In fact, total handle on live racing in New York decreased from $53 million in 2004 to $46 million in 2010, a decrease of 13 percent."

http://www.timesunion.com/local/article/Tracks-get-no-VLT-boost-3788655.php#ixzz23onUXcRb

Waiting on NYRA

We are all waiting with baited breath to see who gets appointed to the New NYRA Board.  It can't be too political, it can't all be people in the business.  It needs new outside people, it needs politicals and it needs equine industry people.

Just so you all know, I have not received a call from the Governor yet.

Assembly Racing Committee Chairman J. Gary Pretlow, D-Yonkers, said that he and Speaker Sheldon Silver will meet Wednesday to discuss Assembly picks for the new NYRA Reorganization Board that Gov. Andrew Cuomo is expected to announce by Oct. 1.

Cuomo will name eight people including a chairman to the board. The search is also on for a new chief executive officer and published, but unconfirmed reports, have said McClain — NYRA’s president and chief operating officer — will be replaced, too.

http://saratogian.com/articles/2012/08/14/news/doc502a888e8e032413280963.txt

The Numbers at Saratoga

The New York Racing Association Inc., which operates the Saratoga Springs track, says about 465,000 people have attended 22 days of races so far this summer. That crowd is 2 percent smaller than the 474,000 present through this point in the 2011 meet.

Bets placed at the track totaled $66.1 million, down $500,000 to date, or 0.8 percent to date.

http://www.bizjournals.com/albany/news/2012/08/14/nyra-saratoga-meet-update.html

So Who Do We Get to Run NYRA?

NYRA

There was a commentary in the Thoroughbred Times this weekend calling for Governor Cuomo to appoint a “cold-hearted” CEO of NYRA.  The author wants the fans to be put first.

There is some real merit to the article, but I think the author wants to take this in the wrong direction.

NYRA has always been run by horse racing people.  People who know and love the business.  I think the flaw in the business model may lie there.  NYRA has a long and storied history of running NYRA, as a business, into the ground, and then screaming for the tax payers to bail it out.

What New York State needs is a cold hearted CEO, who can run NYRA like a business.  With the baskets full of cash coming from the VLT’s this can be done.  NYRA can succeed.  NYRA can be profitable (or at least not lose its’ shorts).   But it is going to have to be run like a business.  There are people in the private sector in the associated fields of gaming and horse racing who have experience doing this.

NYRA should not be run just to make the fans happy.  NYRA should be run to work for all of New York, including the tax payers.  These matters do not have to be mutually exclusive.  A successful business will produce something that their customers will want to spend money on and not run at a loss.

I think it is time that NYRA was run by an Accountant who knows gaming and horse racing.  Someone who will make the hard cuts that others cannot or will not.

Rant over.

Cuomo can install a good, coldhearted CEO at NYRA with marching orders to put fans first. (Not a COO. Not a CFO, but an experienced CEO.) Fans want the modern sports model, so the direction is clear.

 *   *  *

A coldhearted CEO at NYRA can say to the other racing jurisdictions, "We need for Thoroughbred racing to have a strong national presence in all of our major markets to have growing public support and to maximize our off-track wagering."

Where does Cuomo find this individual who is going to change the face of Thoroughbred racing in the media capital of the world?

Once a business plan and preliminary projections are in black and white, I don't think he will have to look very far. You know, if a coldhearted CEO can make it there, they can make it anywhere.

http://www.thoroughbredtimes.com/national-news/2012/08/10/pope-commentary.aspx

The Economic Engine of Indian Gaming

I cite below two news reports from California and Oklahoma describing the enormous economic impact of Indian Gaming in those States.  So the Indian Nations in California and Oklahoma have commissioned economic studies to point of to the state political leaders.  This is a lesson that should not to be lost on New York’s political leadership. 

States have a tendency to see Indian gaming enterprises as taking money away from the State and in the best of circumstances as a direct form of revenue generation for the State.  This tends to put the Indian nations and the States in an adversarial position.  However, the larger picture of the economic contribution must not be dismissed.  The message of the California and Oklahoma tribes to their State governments is “Hey, the indirect benefit you will get from us being open way surpasses what you are trying to squeeze out of us directly.”

I am just sayin’.

Indian casinos in California generate $7.5 billion in economic activity every year and have helped to create 52,000 jobs, according to a report released Wednesday.

The study, conducted for the California Nations Indian Gaming Association by research firm Beacon Economics, put the overall income collected by the employees at about $2.7 billion. The study found that of the $7.5 billion in annual economic activity tied to the Indian gaming industry, about $3.5 billion is generated directly from spending at casinos.

http://www.newsmax.com/US/california-indian-casino-profit/2012/08/09/id/448095

http://www.redding.com/news/2012/aug/12/study-shows-indian-gaming-pumps-75-billion-into/

A recent report by Casino City Press, a leading comprehensive annual survey of gaming in the United States, showed that in 2010 alone, gaming across the state had grown to nearly 2.33 percent of Oklahoma's economy. Tribal gaming is the most significant portion of that growth. In fact, of the $210 million in revenue generated from gaming in 2010, $99.8 million came from casinos while the remainder resulted from the Oklahoma lottery and the state's racetracks.

http://newsok.com/oklahoma-indian-gaming-boosts-revenue-creates-jobs/article/3699805#ixzz23RAKpLAZ

Saratoga Casino and Raceway has applied to Kentucky state racing regulators to buy an interest in Ellis Park, a thoroughbred racetrack in Henderson, Kentucky.  The track was designed after the Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York, and features a 1.125 mile dirt track.

The documents don't indicate how much of an ownership stake Saratoga Casino and Raceway is seeking at Ellis.

But Ellis Park owner Ron Geary has said that he has been seeking a minority partner to invest $3 million to help pay for remodeling a portion of the Henderson thoroughbred track's clubhouse into a casino-style facility and accommodate Instant Racing gambling machines.

http://www.courierpress.com/news/2012/aug/13/new-york-casinoharness-track-seeking-a-stake-in/

Odds and Ends.......

The Cuomo administration threatened Thursday to shift nearly $50 million in state road projects within Seneca Nation territories to other communities unless the tribe quickly drops its demands for "exorbitant'' payments from Albany.

 Worsening relations between the tribe and state was evident in two dueling media events: one called by the head of the state transportation department a few miles outside the tribe's Cattaraugus reservation to deliver the project cancelation threat and one later in the day by Seneca officials to declare the Cuomo administration's actions may be putting motorists at risk.
"We're getting to the breaking point and the state's willing to jeopardize public safety to achieve political purposes," Seneca Nation President Robert Odawi Portersaid

http://www.buffalonews.com/city/capital-connection/albany/article981998.ece

And speaking of the Senecas, Gambling Opponent attorney Neil Murray is keeping his pr and litigation pressure in opposition to the Senecas construction and opening of the permanent casino in Buffalo.

Counsel for the Citizens Against Casino Gambling in Erie County issued a stern reminder yesterday in a letter to the attorney representing the Seneca Nation of Indians with respect to the Tribe's plans announced last Wednesday to proceed with the construction of a $130 million permanent casino in downtown Buffalo despite ongoing litigation in Federal court challenging its legality.

The anti-gambling coalition's attorney, Cornelius D. Murray, noted that the same court had already struck down two previous approvals of such gambling by the National Indian Gaming Commission ("NIGC"). On July 25 the court issued a final briefing schedule before issuing a determination with respect to the NIGC's latest attempt to get around the Court's prior rulings. The Senecas' attorney was in court when the court issued the scheduling order, just one week before the Tribe's announcement on August 1.

"It's remarkable," Murray said, "that the Tribe would presume to move forward as if the Court's decision won't matter one way or the other. Without advising the court of their plans, the Senecas have apparently adopted a 'damn the torpedoes' approach. I can't imagine putting that amount of money at risk before knowing how the judge will rule." Murray added. 

"This project has been on-again, off-again, ever since the Senecas announced a $330 million project with a 22-story hotel and parking garage nearly five years ago. This latest proposal is a significant scale-back, but it still involves over $130 million. "At the very least, the more prudent course for everyone would be to wait and see how Judge Skretny decides," Murray said.

http://www.buffalorising.com/2012/08/dump-trucks-dont-impress-casino-opponents.html

The first week at Saratoga produced some great numbers, but those seem to be slacking off a bit.  However, the genral trend of betting on Saratoga races is up.

While on-track business has been a bit weaker than 2011, total wagering on races at Saratoga Race Course is up 7.6 percent through the first 16 days of this year's meet.

According to NYRA stats, attendance for the first three weeks of the meet ending Monday was 319,806, a 1.9 percent decrease from 325,909 in 2011.

On-track handle totaled $48,208,874, up .7 percent from $47,896,094 last year. Wagering downstate at Belmont Café and the Aqueduct simulcast center was $8,849,611 for a combined NYRA facilities handle of $57,058,485, up 2.2 percent from $55,835,011 in 2011.

The total handle, which includes wagers on Saratoga races both on-track and from simulcast outlets nationwide, was $233,380,247, up 7.6 percent from $216,977,479 last year.
The average betting interests per race for the 16 days were 8.5 (1,411 total) compared to 8.6 (1,372 total) in 2011. There have been 73 turf races and 13 races taken off the turf and moved to the main track, compared to 65 on and 12 off in 2011.

Attendance on track Monday was up eight percent to 15,667, the on-track handle was up 16 percent to $2,471,581 and the all-sources handle was ahead 26 percent to $10,939,600.

http://centralny.ynn.com/content/special_coverage/594339/the-spa-spot--total-handle-up-as-third-week-wraps/

Gamblers wagered a record $1.13 billion at the "racino" at Aqueduct Racetrack in New York City last month, the latest evidence that the popular electronic gambling operation is putting a dent in neighboring states' casino revenues.
The Resorts World Casino New York City in Queens reported to state regulators that the amount gambled and the net revenue for July were at an all-time monthly high since its opening in October. The casino — often called a racino because it overlooks the Aqueduct thoroughbred track — has about 5,000 electronic slots and other games.


http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/record_wagered_at_aqueduct_racino_6up3YlmWizSuyrTSVWMbJM#ixzz22yyg6xyG

The New York Post is reporting that the long-awaited report on the 20 racing-related horse deaths that occurred over Aqueduct’s inner dirt track last winter will be released Tuesday, Aug. 21.

 The New York Task Force on Racehorse Health and Safety was formed March 22 in response to a letter sent from Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s office to the New York Racing Association expressing concern over the rash of fatal breakdowns, which totaled more than twice the national average per 1,000 starts.

http://www.nypost.com/p/sports/horse_racing/aqueduct_report_on_race_horse_deaths_oTsvnMZ5wriOdOHltshf8M#ixzz22yfcJqyM

Massachusetts Governor Signs Mashpee Gaming Compact

While I have been keeping a vague eye on what has been happening in Massachusetts, I was under the impression that it would be some time until that actually started moving forward. Well, lo and behold, I am once again proven wrong.

Like Governor Cuomo lightening swift movements in New York, Governor Patrick in Massachusetts not only got the Gaming Law passed, he now has an executed Gaming Compact with the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe. Further, the Tribe has already gotten the approval of the Town of Taunton to build the casino there.  

The other competing and proposed casinos in Massachusetts are now in danger of being left in the dust of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe, whilst they bicker and fight to get their piece of the action:

On Monday, July 30, the governor’s office in the State House was jammed packed with citizens of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe, members of the press, state officials, the mayor of the City of Taunton, and of course Patrick and Mashpee Chairman Cedric Cromwell, all celebrating the signing of the tribal-state gaming compact. The tribe intends to build a $500 million destination resort casino in the southeastern part of the state.

The gaming compact calls for the tribe to share 21.5 percent of gross gaming revenue with the state, an amount that some people have questioned as excessive. But Aaron Tobey Jr., council vice chairman, said the compact preserves the tribe’s aboriginal hunting and fishing rights. “That has more value than the revenue sharing itself. That means so much to us,” Tobey said.

 Cromwell said the compact is unique in Indian country. “Here’s the key point: I believe we’re the first tribe where the state and the government have negotiated a compact with a landless tribe based on the history of who we are as a sovereign federally recognized tribe with 12,000 years of history,” Cromwell said.

In April, the Mashpee nation unveiled plans for a $500 million destination resort casino in Taunton, one of the oldest cities in the country, located in part of the Wampanoag’s vast aboriginal territory that tribal ancestors called Cohannet. On May 17, Cromwell and Taunton Mayor Tom Hoye announced that they had negotiated an intergovernmental agreement (IGA) for the development of the tribe’s gaming facility. The IGA was required by the state before the tribe could move forward with its casino plans. The agreement will provide approximately $33 million in up front mitigation payments and a minimum annual payment to the city of approximately $13 million. Taunton residents approved the casino proposal at a binding referendum on June 9 by a vote of 7696-4571. Also in June, the National Indian Gaming Commission approved the tribe’s gaming ordinance and the Bureau of Indian Affairs announced the tribe’s land-into-trust application was under review.

http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2012/07/31/massachusets-governor-signs-mashpee-gaming-compact-126809#ixzz22PnQ3a1r

Albany Times Union Wades in On Tribal Areas of Exclusive Gambling

I am just going to post the whole thing........

Perhaps at one time New York state’s strategy of sitting out the Seneca on the issues surrounding casino gambling had a point. Not any more. Not when this impasse is hurting communities.

It’s way past time for the state and the tribe to settle their differences, of which there seem to be fairly few, none of them terribly complex. An accord could free up hundreds of millions of dollars for the state and municipalities at a time when they clearly need it, in some cases desperately.

The benefits of not working this out? Short of keeping negotiators employed, perhaps, we have no idea.

The dispute, which has been going on for several years now, is centered on competition the Seneca face from state-sanctioned racetrack video lottery terminal parlors. The tribe, which operates casinos in Buffalo, Niagara Falls and Salamanca, wants three things: that the racinos not call themselves casinos; that the VLTs not be called slots, and for the state to say it will honor its word not to put competing casinos in their areas through 2023, even if voters legalize non-tribal casino gambling.

Those would seem to be three simple requests. But the state is holding out for a comprehensive solution to other issues surrounding its relationship with tribes, such as the notoriously long and complex saga of Native American land claims. As a result, the Seneca have held back $400 million in gambling proceeds.

The state has a similar problem with the Mohawks, although the amount of money they’re holding back is far less.

To be sure, the state can arguably wait the tribes out, since it’s taking in hundreds of millions of dollars a year from VLTs. Last year, the state says its cut for education from VLTs was $667 million, and the figure has been growing annually in recent years. If this year’s trends stay on track, revenue will be up 45 percent — approaching $1 billion.

The Cuomo administration is also looking to get voters to allow full-fledged casino gambling in the state, which would likely make anything the tribes give it look like a pittance.

It wouldn’t however, square with the state’s exclusivity agreements with tribes limiting competition around their casinos in exchange for a cut of their proceeds. Violating that, which the tribes say the racinos have done at least semantically, is a moral issue Gov. Andrew Cuomo and the Legislature should consider. New York’s and America’s history with Indian tribes is hardly something to be proud of.

If the concept of fair play isn’t enough for the state, there’s a more practical consideration here. Caught in the middle of this gamesmanship are communities like Niagara Falls and Buffalo, which were supposed to get a quarter of the money the state took in from Indian gaming. They’re out an estimated $100 million to date. And the state is out $300 million since 2009, hardly small change even for New York.

Would the racinos make substantially less money if they never used the words “casino” or “slots”? Would it really cost New York that much to rule out casino gambling in the western and northern parts of the state for the next decade or so? After all, New York is, at best, years away from legalizing non-tribal casino gambling. And the real money is closer to New York City anyway.

And if the state won’t do the right thing morally or financially, then it should say why not. Communities struggling to pay their bills are owed at least that much.

http://blog.timesunion.com/opinion/new-york%E2%80%99s-%E2%80%A8dicey-bet/21361/

Indians, the Internet and Withheld Payments to Localities

As things ramp up on the National Level for Internet Gaming, the Native Communities are flexing their muscles in DC.

The Senate Committee on Indian Affairs (SCIA) released a discussion draft bill on Internet gaming titled the “Tribal Online Gaming Act of 2012.” The draft was publicly announced to Tribal Leaders gathered at the National Indian Gaming Association’s Legislative Summit in Washington, D.C.

 A summary provided by the SCIA acknowledges the important economic contributions that Indian gaming provides to this country. It states that Indian Gaming “has created 628,000 jobs for Indians and local communities, and comprises 40 percent of all gaming in the United States,” and finds “that any federalization of online gaming must provide positive economic benefits for Indian Tribes.”

http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2012/07/26/scia-releases-draft-internet-gaming-bill-at-niga-legislative-summit-125633

You have to love Robert Odawi Porter, President of Seneca Nation.  He can speak so eloquently, he can make gaming sound poetic.

Robert Odawi Porter, the president of the New York-based Seneca Nation of Indians, said "a thousand flowers bloomed for Indian nations" after Congress allowed tribes to enter the big leagues of gambling in 1988. At a Senate Indian Affairs Committee meeting in February, he said online gaming threatened tribal sovereignty and the tens of thousands of jobs the casinos had created.

http://www.kansascity.com/2012/07/29/3729872/tribes-fear-that-legalizing-online.html#storylink=cpy

However, the municipalities are not looking so kindly upon the Seneca and Mohawks nations right now.  The Albany Times Union is reporting today on the withheld Indian payments to localities:

The Seneca and Mohawk tribes have for years withheld casino payments to the state, claiming that New York violated contracts with the tribes by allowing gambling in their exclusive territories. Consequently, the state stopped sending money — more than $100 million so far — to municipalities where Indian casinos operate.

Without their share of casino money, the local governments are straining to provide basic services. And with no compromise in sight, arbitrators may have to resolve the long-running dispute.

The Seneca Nation of Indians, which operates casinos in Buffalo, Niagara Falls and Salamanca, stopped sending payments starting in 2009. They say the state violated the compact that gives the Seneca exclusive gambling rights west of the Finger Lakes when it allowed three western New York harness tracks to operate video lottery terminals.

 Seneca President Robert Odawi Porter said about $400 million worth of withheld payments to the state has been placed in escrow. A quarter of the money would have gone to host cities like Buffalo and Niagara Falls.

The St. Regis Mohawks, who operate a casino on their land straddling the Canadian border, separately decided in October 2010 to stop making payments, citing slot machines operating on Indian territory elsewhere in northern New York.

http://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Casino-fight-brings-pain-3745145.php#ixzz227JCnRBn

Internet Gaming and the Indian Tribes

Internet Gaming and the Tribes

I had written earlier this year about the Justice Department opining that Internet Gaming per se is not in violation of Federal Law.  I have not been reporting it closely because New York has, as yet, not shown any real interest.  However, with Congress crawling towards national regulation of on line gaming, the Indian Tribes want to ensure that they get their piece of the action.  Now, this will impact New York as certainly the Oneidas and the Senecas and possibly the Mohawks have the resources,  interest and experience to jump into this ring.

As it stands, New York State will not be entitled to a piece of anything the Tribes garner if they venture into this market.

So now, I will try and keep you updated.

And now the news:

Since a December 2011 Department of Justice opinion that not all Internet gambling is banned by federal law, Delaware has legalized online gambling and Nevada is closing in on making online poker possible. New Jersey, too, is working to make it a reality.

With some states readying to start online gambling, Native American tribal leaders are calling on the federal government to step in as it did with brick-and-mortar gambling and establish regulations that ensure tribes get a piece of the action without having their revenue taxed and their sovereignty compromised.

http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/wireStory/tribes-federal-regulation-internet-gaming-16865932

Indian Affairs Chairman Daniel Akaka, D-Hawaii, has released a draft bill that would outline rules for allowing online gambling by Indian tribes. Like other measures that have been introduced, the Tribal Online Gaming Act would only authorize online poker. Supporters say unlike other forms of Internet gambling, online poker is a game of skill and less susceptible to manipulation.

The Senate Indian Affairs Committee examined how proposals that call for legalizing online poker might impact the current gaming operations offered by Indian tribes. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., and Minority Whip Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., are currently in negotiations on developing a proposal that would legalize online poker in exchange for tightening restrictions on other forms of Internet gambling.

http://techdailydose.nationaljournal.com/2012/07/tribes-want-input-on-net-gambl.php

New Jersey

Just as New York appears closer to legalizing gambling, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie is blocking attempts to expand his state’s gambling options beyond Atlantic City, according to Bloomberg News.


After Pennsylvania legalized slots in 2006 and table games in 2010, it began usurping gambling revenue from Atlantic City. In fact, revenue for boardwalk casinos has fallen 37 percent since 2006, to $3.3 billion last year. And with more competition likely to arrive from New York, lawmakers want to amend the state constitution to allow casinos near the Meadowlands, closer to Manhattan.
 But Christie said he wouldn’t back expansion until he knows for certain he can’t turn around Atlantic City. “Atlantic City deserves to have five years to try and get itself revitalized and back on its feet,” Christie has said. He’s working to encourage development in the area, and already gave a $261 million tax break towards the development of the boardwalk’s first new casino in a decade, the Revel.


Newmark Grubb Knight Frank Chairman Jeffrey Gural is pushing Christie to reduce his time frame. He owns the Meadowlands racetrack and wants to develop a casino on the site, which he said could net the state $350 million a year, depending on how it taxes that revenue. Most importantly, analysts say, it would help stop some of the cash-strapped state’s potential gaming revenue from trickling across state lines.

http://therealdeal.com/blog/2012/07/26/gov-christie-opposes-gambling-expansion-to-protect-atlantic-city/

Saratoga Race Course is Off to a Very Good Start

On track handle, total handle, and attendance posted increases from 2011 after the first four days of racing (July 20-23) at Saratoga Race Course, according to the New York Racing Association.

Attendance for the first week was 75,369, up 2% from 73,875 in 2011.

On-track handle for the week totaled $12,731,605, up 14.2% from $11,146,737 last year.

All-sources handle, which includes wagers on Saratoga races both on-track and from simulcast outlets nationwide, was $63,688,669, up 12.3% from $56,688,557 last year.


Read more on BloodHorse.com: http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/71499/spa-wagering-up-first-four-days#ixzz21YPBk3Zc

The interesting thing here is why attendance is not up all that much, the handle is disproportionately up.  People are spending and betting again.

2012 Saratoga Institute Conference On Racing and Gaming Law

On August 14th and 15th, the Albany Law School Saratoga Institute will be once again be holding its Conference on Racing and Gaming at the Gideon Putnam Hotel in Saratoga Springs. 
The first day is going to focus on more of the nuts and bolts of what is going on in horse racing in New York today.
The second day is going to focus more on the gaming side of the equation.  Under discussion shall be:
Siting of Casinos in New York: From Racinos to Resort Destinations;
On-Line Gaming in New York; and
A New NYRA with a New Regulatory Framework.

The Siting of Casino discussion should be lively as Robert Odawi Porter, former Professor of Indian Law at Syracuse Law School and the current President of the Seneca Nation is one of the panel speakers.  In the Seneca's Gaming Compact with the State of New York, the Senecas were granted a  exclusive right to offer slot machines and other gaming devices west of State Route 14.  State Route 14 (I had to get out my map) runs from Seneca Falls down to Elmira.  That is one big chunk of real estate! Seneca Nation takes the position that since the State has authorized VLT's at Batavia Downs and Hamburg Casino, the State has violated the Compact.

Needless to say, Seneca Nation does not want any of the potential full blown casinos envisioned by Governor Cuomo to be placed in their back yards, siphoning off customers.

The discussion of the Reorganization of NYRA should be interesting as well, with representatives of the industry and the regulatory government piping in.  However, I wish they had gotten some elected representatives up on the panel to discuss where they see this going from a policy perspective.

For more information on the event:

http://www.albanylaw.edu/sub.php?navigation_id=2151

And the NYRA Takeover is Firming Up.

Fred Dicker of the New Post Reported yesterday that Governor Cuomo will make his move on NYRA after completion of the Saratoga Meet.

Gov. Cuomo will put the New York Racing Association out of its scandal-scarred misery “promptly” after the historic Saratoga Race Track meet that begins this Friday, The Post has learned.

The much-anticipated Cuomo action, authorized by the Legislature last month in the wake of a long series of NYRA scandals, will take the form of the appointment of a new 17-member board of directors, a majority of which will be picked by Cuomo and the legislative leaders.
It is rumored that Current NYRA President/CEO Ellen McClain will be fired as part of the transformation as soon as the meet ends on September 3.

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/cuomo_whip_coming_down_OtS0rKivU181FjKqojxjfN#ixzz20t4Q2ZzL

I had missed this article a couple of weeks ago, but names are being floated out there for possible appointment to the new NYRA Board.  Some very good candidates and a couple who may be too bureaucratic in their approach to like.
http://www.saratogian.com/articles/2012/07/03/news/doc4ff1ce1e4531f423660891.txt?viewmode=fullstory

Some people in the horseracing industry are concerned about the NYRA Board appointment process.

http://www.horseraceinsider.com/players-up/07152012-where-is-press-spotlight-on-nyra-board-appointment-process/

http://tenoonan.com/2012/05/18/something-fishy-about-nyra-controversy/

OK, It Appears that NYRA has a LOONNNGGGG Way to Go

The Oversight Borad for NYRA (Where have they been for the last decade?) has issued a report of their review of NYRA, indicating that the out of control spending by NYRA, if it does not abate, will outstrip the income from VLT's.  That is a whole lot of money!

Is this report blowing smoke to make it politically palitable to reign in NYRA, or have things actually been that bad?

The board that oversees New York state’s horse racetracks is urging the New York Racing
Association to take steps to boost revenue beyond video lottery terminals in order to remain in financial health.

The Franchise Oversight Board in an extensive examination of the Adqueduct Racetrack, Belmont Park and Saratoga Racecourse presented its view of the state of the sport, outlined financial improvements due to video lottery terminals and called for efforts to reinvigorate racing.

While the board said video lottery terminals provide a way of supplementing income, it indicated that horse racing itself must be operated in a way that is profitable.

The report, which outlined concerns over the credibility of the sport and growing costs amid declining wagering on races, cited “NYRA’s growing expense structure in the face of declining handle across the industry.”

“This status quo is simply unsustainable,” the board wrote. “If expenses are allowed to continue to grow, not even the substantial investment made by the state into NYRA through the VLT support payments will be enough to cover the losses incurred by NYRA’s operations.”

NYRA in 2011 lost more than $24 million, up 40 percent from a $17 million loss in 2010, despite a $6.3 million infusion from the introduction of video lottery terminals at Aqueduct. NYRA’s growing salary and fringe benefits, according to the report, helped boost general and administrative expenses by 14.7 percent or $20.9 million in 2011.

NYRA projects $18.9 million in profit for 2012, due to $20.6 million in payments from VLT proceeds and $27.5 million in VLT capital funds, according to the report.

http://libn.com/2012/07/06/ny-tells-nyra-to-look-beyond-vlts-for-revenue/

OTB Flying Under the Radar

OK, I live in Albany.  And I keep an eye out for Gambling issues in the news.

So, how come this story does not come to light until 4 days later in The Daily Racing Form?  Granted the DRF cares about this stuff, but how come the NY Times, the Post, and the Daily News missed this?

As you may or may not know, NYC Off Track Betting filed Bankruptcy a couple of years ago.  The question then was:  How can a gambling organization with a near monopoly in New York City go broke?

And,:  How does the Catskill OTB get into New York City.  Forget the Mayor's legitimate concerns, how did this end run take place and that the press have missed it completely?

Anyway.............................

The New York Assembly and Senate passed a bill just before adjourning Thursday night that will allow Catskill Off-Track Betting Corporation to operate 10 betting parlors in New York City, but it is unclear if Gov. Andrew Cuomo will allow the bill to become law.

If approved, the bill would re-open New York’s five boroughs to offtrack betting less than two years after the New York City Off-Track Betting Corporation went bankrupt, taking 1,000 largely union jobs with it. The bankruptcy resulted in the shuttering of 55 locations in which bettors could place horse racing wagers.

If approved, the bill would re-open New York’s five boroughs to offtrack betting less than two years after the New York City Off-Track Betting Corporation went bankrupt, taking 1,000 largely union jobs with it. The bankruptcy resulted in the shuttering of 55 locations in which bettors could place horse racing wagers.

Rich Azzopardi, a spokesman for Cuomo, said Friday morning that Cuomo would need to review the bill before deciding whether to sign it.

 “This wasn’t part of a three-way agreement,” Azzopardi said, in reference to the unanimity between the governor’s office and two legislative houses that many times precedes passage of bills in New York.

 If Cuomo decides to sign the bill, he would risk upsetting New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, whose administration has expressed concerns about re-opening the city to offtrack betting without major changes to state law. New York City OTB largely failed because of an outdated business model that relied far too heavily on bricks-and-mortar locations, and it was further burdened by enormous labor costs.

 In addition, Cuomo has said that he wants to include OTB operations in a “major overhaul” of New York’s gambling policy. Giving Catskill the right to re-open OTBs in New York City in advance of the administration’s development of a formal policy for the state would undercut the process.

http://www.drf.com/news/ny-legislature-passes-bill-allowing-catskill-otb-operate-new-york-city

RWB Injunction Lawsuit Against Shinnecock Tribe Thrown Out

Today, In a two to one ruling, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, the Federal Appeals Court covering New York State, Reversed the Decision of the US District Court which had granted an Injunction in favor of the State of New York and against the Shinnecock Indian Tribe of Eastern Long Island prohibiting the Tribe from opening a Casino.  The decision was on procedural grounds and does not create a right for the Tribe to open a Casino.

A full copy of the Decision can be found here. 

http://www.ca2.uscourts.gov/decisions/isysquery/63452fed-1cf6-4063-aece-b6c84e0047dc/2/doc/08-1194_complete_opn.pdf#xml=http://www.ca2.uscourts.gov/decisions/isysquery/63452fed-1cf6-4063-aece-b6c84e0047dc/2/hilite/

The Court ruled that:

the district court lacked subject matter jurisdiction over this action, and thus do not reach the merits of this appeal.

The Court then sent the case back to the Federal District Court with instructions to transmit the case to State Court. The Decision does not clear the path for the Tribe to open a casino, but merely serves as a impediment.

However, since this lawsuit began, the Shinnecock Tribe has become a federally recognized Indian Tribe.  The State may have problems proceeding with a lawsuit now that the Tribe will enjoy a federally recognized Sovereign Immunity.

The details of the decision will probably only interest those of us who enjoy a good romp through Federal Court Civil Procedure.  For the rest of you, the case got thrown out because the Federal Court does not entertain all lawsuits.  Here, the Court was looking for issues of Federal law and could not find them.  Thus, the suit got tossed and will be referred to State Court.

The district court had ruled in favor of the State and the Town and granted a permanent injunction prohibiting the Shinnecock from building a casino on Westwoods without complying with state and local law. New York v. Shinnecock Indian Nation, 523 F. Supp. 2d 185 (E.D.N.Y. 2007); see also New York v. Shinnecock Indian Nation, 560 F. Supp. 2d

The Appeals Court ruled that the State and Town had allege only violations of state and local law in their complaints. The State alleges that the Tribe’s construction of the casino would violate state gaming and environmental laws and the Town alleges that it would violate local zoning and wetlands protection ordinances. Although the State’s complaint refers to federal law, these references assert only that federal law does not immunize the Shinnecock’s conduct and thus cannot provide a defense against the Tribe’s violation of state and local law.

NYRA Bill Passes in NYS Legislature

The New York State Assembly Wednesday gave final passage to a bill creating a new 17-member state government-dominated board to oversee the non-profit operator of New York's three thoroughbred tracks: Belmont, Aqueduct and Saratoga.

 The new panel will replace the current 25-member New York Racing Association, which is made up of industry insiders, for up to three years.

 Under the bill, Gov. Cuomo will have eight appointments and get to name the chairman. Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos will have to picks each while the New York Racing Association will have five selections.

 The breeders and horsemen associations will have two non-voting members to advise on various issues.

The bill now goes to Gov. Cuomo for his signature.

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/more-sports/gov-cuomo-officially-takes-reins-york-struggling-horse-racing-industry-article-1.1099276#ixzz1yS0BqORY

A copy of the bill can be found here:  http://www.governor.ny.gov/assets/documents/GPB45NYRABILL.pdf

Governor’s Memorandum in Support:

http://www.governor.ny.gov/assets/documents/GPB45NYRAMEMO.pdf

According to pending New York State legislation, representatives from the New York Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association and New York Thoroughbred Breeders, Inc. will participate on the New York Racing Association's (NYRA) newly configured board of directors as non-voting "ex-officio members to advise on critical economic and equine health concerns of the racing industry, one appointed by the New York Thoroughbred Breeders Inc. (NYTB), and one appointed by the New York Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association (NYTHA)."

The revocation of racing industry stakeholder voting privileges is just one aspect of the NYRA reorganization under The New York State Racing Franchise Accountability and Transparency Act of 2012. The newly configured executive board, the Reorganization Board, will sit for three years. With 17 voting members the board is smaller in size (down from 25 members), and its make-up skewed towards government rather than racing industry control. The 17-member board will be composed of eight members appointed by the governor, two each by the Assembly Speaker and Senate Temporary President, and five by the current NYRA board. By the end of three years, the Reorganization Board is charged to produce a plan to transition NYRA to private control as a not-for-profit corporation.

The legislation maintains that the temporary reorganization board shall be under public control to ensure The New York Racing Association, Inc. works in the best interest of all stakeholders in horse racing including fans, owners and breeders by managing the state racing franchise with transparency and accountability.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/liz-o/new-york-horsemen-and-bre_b_1608464.html

Adquaduct Casino Drawing Enormous Income from Slots!

The Resorts World Casino at Aqueduct earned the top spot in the country for slot machine revenues last month, hauling in a whopping $57.5 million, according to state gambling data.
The Queens racino's income in May even surpassed that of Connecticut's Mohegan Sun Casino, which pulled in $55.4 million during the same period, the Daily News reports.
"New York City gamblers have long filled their gambling desires in Atlantic City and Connecticut," Joseph Weinert, senior vice president of Spectrum Gaming Group, a consulting firm, told the News. "Now they have someplace right in their backyard, and they are going there in droves."


Read more: http://www.dnainfo.com/new-york/20120619/ozone-park/aqueduct-racino-pulled-most-slot-machine-cash-us#ixzz1yLJ9oxXQ

NYRA. WELL I GUESS WE SAW THIS COMING

On May 4, 2012, the New York Racing Association fired President Charles Hayward following revelations he may have known the racing group was violating state law by not lowering pari-mutuel takeout rates on exotic wagers.

 Also let go was Patrick Kehoe, NYRA's senior vice president and counsel.

The termination of Hayward and Kehoe came May 4, the same day the NYRA board was to provide its response to state regulators looking into the matter. The state Inspector General's office launched an investigation into the matter that could result in civil or criminal sanctions.

 "C. Steven Duncker, the chairman of NYRA's board of directors, stated that the board's decision was based on a determination that these executives failed to perform their duties at a level required by the board," NYRA said in a brief written statement. "Mr. Duncker noted that there are ongoing governmental inquirings relating to the circumstances surrounding the takeout issue, that NYRA was cooperating with these inquiries, and that NYRA expects that those inquiries will thoroughly and fairly investigate the matter."

Hayward and Kehoe were both named in a recent interim report by the New York State Racing and Wagering Board as having possible knowledge that NYRA illegally maintained a 26% takeout level for 15 months after expiration of a state law. The takeout was not lowered until last December to its proper 25% level.

http://espn.go.com/horse-racing/story/_/id/7891818/nyra-fires-hayward-kehoe-amid-probe

Then on May 14^th, the administration of Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo asked Tuesday that payments from the casino at Aqueduct racetrack to the New York Racing Association, which runs the track, be suspended immediately. It also said it was exploring revoking the association’s racing franchise.

“Unless NYRA immediately starts to act in the best interests of racing and the taxpayers of this state, we will pursue a course of action to re-establish the racing franchise with a qualified, ethical, and responsible steward of horse racing,” a letter sent to NYRA’s chairman, Steven Duncker, stated. It was signed by John Sabini, the chairman of the New York State Racing and Wagering Board, and Robert Megna, the chairman of a NYRA oversight panel.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/16/sports/new-york-racing-association-is-facing-loss-of-payments.html

Finally, Governor Cuomo takes control of the NYRA Board, relieving us of unwanted and unneeded drama from NYRA this season.

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo, Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos, Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, and the New York Racing Association (NYRA) on Tuesday announced an agreement to establish the NYRA Reorganization Board that will place NYRA under temporary public control in order to reform the association and transform oversight and management of horse racing in New York State.

And the NYRA board wisely agrees: "I want to express my appreciation to the Governor for his commitment to a world class horse racing industry in New York," NYRA Board Chair Steven Duncker said. "The NYRA Reorganization Board will help ensure that racing in New York has a strong and stable future as the gaming and racing industry evolves. I thank the members of the current NYRA Board for supporting the changes announced today and together we will work to ensure a smooth transition and bright future for New York racing."

"The New York Racing Association today announced the reconfiguration of their Board of Directors. We are excited we have a Governor who has announced he will champion our industry," NYRA Board Member and New York Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association President Rick Violette Jr. said. "New York's Thoroughbred horsemen are willing to work hand in hand with the new Board and the Governor's office to ensure we have a robust industry that continues to provide the very best racing in the country."

The NYRA Reorganization Board will be comprised of a majority of publicly appointed directors, with a Chair nominated by the Governor. The Board will be in effect for three years to restructure and reorganize NYRA, following which NYRA will revert back to majority private control. The current NYRA Board will be dissolved. The NYRA Reorganization Board will go into effect when a majority of the new public directors are appointed. Once appointed, the new board will conduct a national search for a new CEO and General Counsel for NYRA.

The NYRA Reorganization Board will consist of 17 directors. Seven will be appointed by the Governor. The Senate and Assembly will appoint two directors each and five directors will be selected by the current NYRA Board. Breeders and Horsemen will each have an ex officio member. Additionally, a chairperson will be nominated by the Governor subject to Board approval. The current board is 25 directors, with 14 elected by NYRA and 11 appointed by public officials.

http://www.brisnet.com/cgi-bin/editorial/news/article.cgi?id=28965

See also, http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/23/sports/state-seizes-control-of-new-york-racing-association.html

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303610504577420713296641358.html

And the takeover is received well in almost all quarters.

http://hudsonvalley.ynn.com/content/top_stories/585456/racing-community-optimistic-about-nyra-takeover/

http://www.saratoga.com/whatsnew/2012/05/nyra-reorganizes.html

http://articles.nydailynews.com/2012-05-24/news/31842418_1_nyra-board-cuomo-new-york-racing-association

http://www.examiner.com/article/nyra-turns-the-page

In early 2010, New York Racing Association officials stopped cooperating with the court-approved integrity counsel charged with making sure horse racing in the state was clean. By that July, the racing association had abandoned the use of prerace detention barns, a basic element of its efforts to prevent the doping of horses running at its racetracks.

Then, in February 2011, the counsel asked to meet with the racing association’s vice chairman and members of its oversight committee about two continuing investigations. Not only did it not get the meeting, but the firm was also fired by telephone two weeks later.

Now, with the racing association again under fire and being investigated for a fresh set of misdeeds and inaction, the counsel says it wants to give state investigators the 2011 corruption report it had prepared, but that was dismissed by the association. NYRA has refused to allow the counsel to turn it over, invoking client-attorney privilege.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/25/sports/counsel-for-nyra-wants-to-release-its-2011-corruption-report.html?_r=1

The New York Racing and Wagering Board, which oversees horse racing in the state, has limited the size of the purses offered in races involving cheaper horses. It acknowledged that fattened purses, many of them being offered at racetracks where casinos had been opened in recent years, had created a dangerous incentive to push sore or unfit horses onto the track.

The agency said racetracks could not offer purses greater than twice the assigned value of the horses running in any claiming races, the less glamorous races that make up the backbone of the daily programs at many tracks.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/01/sports/new-york-cuts-race-purses-to-protect-horse-safety.html

Cuomo and legislative leaders reached agreement Saturday on a bill for a temporary state government takeover of the New York Racing Association.

The bill, introduced Saturday night, calls for the creation of a 17-member board to oversee the state’s three Thoroughbred tracks: Aqueduct, Belmont and Saratoga. The new panel will replace the current 25-member NYRA board, which is made up of industry insiders, for up to three years.

The bill declares that the temporary structural change is needed "to ensure the viability and continuity" of the racing industry."

"This temporary reorganization board shall be under public control to ensure the New York Racing Association Inc. works in the best interests of all stakeholders in horse racing, including fans, owners and breeders, by managing the state and racing franchise with transparency and accountability," the bill states.

 Cuomo had announced his desire last month to cleanup NYRA after the latest in a string of controversies to strike the agency.

http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/gov-cuomo-close-control-york-racing-association-article-1.1097188#ixzz1yB4yIwF3

AND JUST WHEN THINGS WERE GOING SO WELL.......

FIRST, THE GENTING DEAL FALLS APART….

Governor Andrew Cuomo said talks with gambling giant Genting to build a casino and convention center at the Aqueduct Racetrack in Ozone Park "haven't really worked out," and that he's shopping around for another developer.

"So a few weeks ago we started to bring in other gaming companies, the nation’s best," said Cuomo. "And, governor, they all want to come to New York. And they all have all sorts of exciting ideas, ideas that we didn’t even think of, and these are some of the premier gaming companies in the world, literally."

He also acknowledged something has been apparent for a long time: The Genting convention center proposal, which he announced his January 4 State of the State address, was a loss leader that could only be made whole with gambling.

Now, the governor said, "I’m thinking now the best way to go forward is to have a competition next year when we get the casino legislation passed. We were talking about doing a competition for casino developers, make the convention center-slash-casino development one competition, let’s get the best ideas, the best offers from the best companies on the globe and then we’ll make a decision."

Director of State Operations, Howard Glazer stated that: the clearest way forward appears to be a single international competition once the fate of the casino legislation and referendum has been determined.

http://www.capitalnewyork.com/article/politics/2012/06/6007062/cuomo-says-aqueduct-talks-gambling-giant-genting-havent-really-work

Fred Dicker of the Post reports that:

A Who’s Who of big-name Las Vegas gambling companies is lining up to replace the Genting company as builder/operator of a huge new convention center/megacasino complex in New York City, The Post has learned.

 Over the last three months, top officials from Sands Las Vegas, Caesars Entertainment and MGM Resorts have all told Howard Glaser, Gov. Cuomo’s state operations director, or other top Cuomo aides that they’re interested in replacing Genting.

Among top corporate representatives who spoke with Cuomo’s aides about the project were Sands board Chairman and CEO Sheldon Adelson, Sands VP Andy Abboud, Caesars VP Jan Jones and MGM Resorts VP Alan Feldman, according to the source.

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/cuomo_best_bet_for_nyc_casinos_vegas_APQfchr9pONkyZHz9pShKO#ixzz1yAaR2nuT

THEN, IT TURNS OUT GENTING GOT BIG $ TO CUOMO………..

The New York Times Reported that Genting was a big contributor to Gov. Cuomo

A lobbying group controlled by Genting Bhd. and other gambling interests donated $2 million to a powerful committee that backs New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo at around the same time that the governor announced he would push to legalize casinos.

The New York Gaming Association made the donation in early December to the Committee to Save New York, a business and trade union group that has spent $12 million to support Mr. Cuomo's agenda—more than any other lobbying group in the state. Around the same time, the committee began backing a constitutional amendment to legalize casino gambling.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/05/nyregion/gambling-interests-gave-cuomo-ally-millions.html?_r=1

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303918204577447031922123686.html

However, both the Committee to Save New York and the governor's office insist the donation had nothing to do with Cuomo's sudden support for casino gambling. “We are proud of our track record, and if there are people who felt they were getting something more for contributing to C.S.N.Y., then they are simply wrong," said a representative from the committee.

http://nymag.com/daily/intel/2012/06/gambling-group-donated-to-cuomo-group.html?mid=rss

The Governor stated that said he walked away from his planned union with Genting for what the governor had been touting as North America's biggest convention center. He said he could not tolerate Genting's demands and did not want to be party to backroom deals. Talks could restart in late 2013, he suggested, after the conclusion of a series of envisioned casino expansion votes.

"The current racinos say the selection should be limited to the current racinos," Cuomo said. "I'm 100 percent opposed to that. I believe it should be an open competition." He didn't explain exactly why he views the current racino structure as scandalous, but suggested that taxpayers are not getting a fair return for giving each track the rights to set up VLTs.

Cuomo said that casino siting decisions should be based on the best location, best operator and best deal for the state. He'd like to see geographic balance, and didn't rule out locations in western New York — even though the Seneca Indian Nation argues that it holds exclusivity rights in the region. He did, however, say he disliked Manhattan as a potential site.

http://www.timesunion.com/local/article/Cuomo-calls-racinos-a-scandal-3608897.php#ixzz1yAo8zrXk

THEN, THAT GENTING GOT AN EARLY OPPORTUNITY TO PITCH THE DEAL………..

It was later reported that senior Genting executives put forth the idea for the convention center at a fund-raiser in October at the Westchester estate of Barry Gosin, a commercial property broker. The event was attended by real estate and gambling executives.  A few weeks after the fund-raiser, the gambling association, of which Genting is a member, contributed the $2 million to the Committee to Save New York, the private lobbying group that Mr. Cuomo pushed to be set up.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/07/nyregion/genting-lobbied-for-convention-center-at-cuomo-fund-raiser.html

The Shinnecock Nation Tribal Trustees took exception to Gov. Andrew Cuomo's remarks this week that it would be "unrealistic" to open talks now regarding an Indian casino on Long Island.

In a statement Tuesday, the Trustees say the Shinnecocks "are a tribal nation, not a competitor or a gaming corporation with no community ties, seeking only to enrich itself," and they should not have to wait to get a seat at the table.

http://southampton.patch.com/articles/shinnecocks-tell-cuomo-to-open-l-i-casino-talks

NOW WE ARE FINDING THAT NOT EVERYONE WANTS A CASINO

The Albany Times-Union reports that a poll shows weak support for the constitutional amendment to allow gaming in New York. The Benenson Group talked to 800 New York registered voters last month and found that 50 percent would vote for a constitutional amendment to allow commercial gambling and 47 percent would not — but supporters are willing to be talked out of their position. The early, narrow support indicates the measure may be too weak to win, according to Joel Benenson, a former political aide to Gov. Mario Cuomo.

http://www.timesunion.com/local/article/Pollster-warns-New-York-s-gambling-expansion-plan-3519948.php#ixzz1y9umasxA

And the Anti-Gaming Lobby, having not truly existed and thus caught unprepared for this last winter’s drama, is starting to organize.

The anti-gambling coalition already has its eye on 2013, the soonest the second vote by the Legislature and one by the public could take place.

The group — the Coalition Against Gambling in New York — met with state legislators Monday, hoping to connect with incumbents running for re-election who would again have to vote on the casino Amendment next year.

“We feel that it’s not too soon to begin laying the groundwork for a fight next year,” said Joel Rose, chairman of the Buffalo-based group. “Most of the legislators who are here now will be back then, and we’ll be talking to people who are candidates, also. This is not going to be the end of our efforts. This is really the beginning of our efforts on this amendment.”

The coalition distributed a series of position papers on the amendment, opposing it for a variety of reasons. The economic development benefits of casinos are overrated, and legalizing any form of gambling raises “moral questions” about “the state raising revenue at the expense of the most vulnerable,” it wrote.

“We’re opposed to gambling because of the human destruction that it brings,” said Rev. Duane Motley, senior lobbyist for New Yorkers for Constitutional Freedoms, which is based in Monroe County. “Gambling does not produce economic stimulus that the government likes to paint that it will.”

http://www.lohud.com/article/20120522/NEWS05/305220088/Anti-gambling-group-targets-amendment?odyssey=mod%7Cnewswell%7Ctext%7CNews%7Cs&nclick_check=1

Nevele Grande purchase finalized

Nevele Investors LLC has finalized the purchase of the famed Nevele Grande Hotel and Country Club in Wawarsing with a closing on the property.

The investment group hopes to develop casino gaming at the facility.  It is expected the state will approve it in about a year-and-a-half. Should that come to pass, the new owners anticipate up to a $500 million in redevelopment and employ up to 1,000 people, said Michael Treanor, CEO of Nevele Investors LLC. The group paid $2 million and assumed $20 million in debt.

http://www.midhudsonnews.com/News/2012/April/28/Nevele_pur-28Apr12.html

OTHER GAMING NEWS

The U.S. casino industry continued to show a modest recovery from the recession in 2011 as gaming revenues increased 3 percent nationwide, but downtown Las Vegas and Reno continued their slide down the list of the nation's top gaming markets.

The report covers only commercial casinos and excludes those of American Indian tribes. The survey looks at how the casino industry was affected last year through national and state economic data and public opinion surveys.

The gaming association's survey found commercial casinos in 22 states collected $35.64 billion in gross gaming revenues in 2011, a 3 percent increase from $34.6 billion in 2010. The industry collected $30.74 billion in 2009.

http://www.lvrj.com/business/report-casino-industry-finds-modest-recovery-in-2011-150781465.html

Interestingly, Atlantic City has not been benefiting from the upswing in revenue.  Pennsylvania’s decision to legalize casino table games back in 2010 has really paid off. A new economic report by the American Gaming Association says the state’s gambling industry had one of the largest hikes in revenues in the United States last year. But just as it is at the poker table, for every big state casino industry win there is also a loss. With its business undercut by new casinos in neighboring states, New Jersey saw the greatest revenue drop in the country between 2010 and 2011 — a 7 percent decrease.

http://www.thirteen.org/metrofocus/2012/05/craps-atlantic-city-lost-big-bucks-last-year/

The legalization of Internet wagers cleared the state Assembly’s gambling committee, as lawmakers race to make New Jersey the first state that allows Internet betting.

http://www.pressofatlanticcity.com/news/breaking/new-jersey-assembly-panel-approves-online-gambling-bill/article_7fd470c2-9abe-11e1-93ef-0019bb2963f4.html