Appleseed Report Touts New York Horse Racing as Economic Engine

The newly formed New York Gaming Association is utilizing their Appleseed Report to push their grab for a piece of the as yet not legaalized caino gaming in New York.

In a bid to build support for getting full-scale casinos, the state's nine racetracks released a report Thursday touting the tracks' economic benefits. The report from the New York Gaming Association, the tracks' lobbying arm, uses figures from the state Lottery Division that showed the nine tracks produced nearly $1.3 billion in revenue in 2011.

The report said the tracks had 5,431 full- and part-time employees in 2011. After expenses, the tracks provided to the state $593 million, which is designated for public education, state records show.

Cuomo said he supports the legalization of casino gambling, but hasn't indicated whether he would let the tracks add table games. The video lottery terminals were approved for the tracks in 2001 in the wake of the 9/11 attacks.

http://www.wgrz.com/news/article/155997/37/NY-Tracks-Trotting-Out-Benefits-Of-Racinos

http://www.drf.com/news/new-york-study-shows-196b-casino-impact

Saratoga Casino and Raceway has big plans if casino gaming is legalized and the Racinos are included. The Racino envisions an expansion that would be roughly $40 million.

Plans would include a new hotel, event center, added food and beverage and a parking garage, as well as additional gaming space for table games. We anticipate that would mean 400 full-time, permanent jobs and about 300 union construction jobs to complete the project.

http://poststar.com/highlights/outlook/2012/for-saratoga-casino-and-raceway-it-could-be-game-on/article_95dc6598-5ab1-11e1-8fda-001871e3ce6c.html

Monticello Casino and Raceway has brought more than $25 million for Sullivan County and about 580 full- and part-time jobs for the region, according the according to a new economic impact analysis conducted for the New York Gaming Association.

http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20120221/NEWS/202210332/-1/SITEMAP

This little piece is interesting, from my perspective, as to the lack of opposition to the Governor's plan  to legalize casino gaming in New York.  Here we have a County legislator in Western New York, who appears not to be a fan of the casino gaming concept, but could get behind a local resolution regarding casino gaming if it supports the local existing Racino.  Perhaps everyone can accept the Governor's position of "Hey, lets not kid ourselves, we already have gaming everywhere."  We seem to be getting a lot of "I don't really like gambling, but there is nothing to stop it so lets take it further."  Go figure.

The Western Regional Off-track Betting Corp. is lining up support to turn Batavia Downs into a full-service casino and they took their case to the Genesee County Legislature.
Legislator Mary Pat Hancock said she isn't fully supportive of Gov. Andrew Cuomo's push to legalize casino gambling across the board in New York, but she could support this resolution because it limits gaming to just the existing racing and video-terminal facilities (often called "racinos").

http://thebatavian.com/howard-owens/batavia-downs-lining-support-offer-table-games-full-service-casino/30485

Erie County Fairgrounds has instituted some major improvements have been done for this year’s Buffalo Raceway season.  The half-mile racetrack has been resurfaced with 600 tons of new racetrack material, to give a better racing surface for the horses and work has been done on some of the horse barns and other buildings.

http://www.thesunnews.net/news/671-Buffalo_Raceway_upgrades_show_E.C._Agricultural_Societys_commitment_to_racing.html

In Connecticut, the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal leadership recently celebrated the 20th anniversary of the opening of Foxwoods Casino.

http://www.necn.com/02/15/12/Foxwoods-Casino-celebrates-its-20th-anni/landing_newengland.html?blockID=651928&feedID=4206

In Massachusetts, a Federal Court has ruled that the preference given to federally recognized Indian tribes in the state's new gaming law is based on a political distinction and not race. The U.S. District Court judge has dismissed the lawsuit filed by a prospective New Bedford casino developer, KG Urban Enterprises of New York.

http://www.southcoasttoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20120218/NEWS/202180337/-1/NEWSMAP

Also in Massachusetts, concerns have been raised that the proposed casino licensing fee is too low.  Massachusett’s “minimum” bid of $85 million per license, set in much touted casino legislation last fall, is far lower than what officials in New York and Illinois have charged in recent casino licensing deals.
“If you set it low, they will go low,” Hooke said of the minimum bid set by Massachusetts. “The state has an obligation to ensure that it obtains market prices for its casino gaming licenses.”
It is an assessment backed by John Kindt, a professor of business administration at the University of Illinois. Kindt is urging Illinois to up casino licensing fees to $500 million each, up from just $150,000 that is now being proposed.
Massachusetts casino licenses should also fetch at least half a billion each given the size and density of the state’s population, Kindt argued.

http://www.golocalprov.com/news/casino-2/

Governor Andrew Cuomo’s budget for 2012 was explained by New York Secretary Of State Cesar Perales in a morning meeting held February 16 at the Museum of the Moving Image in Astoria.

Cuomo is also proposing to build the largest convention center in America on the grounds of Aqueduct Race Track. It would replace the Jacob Javits Center, which has for the quarter-century of its existence been deplored as too small and, being in relative isolation in the far western part of Midtown Manhattan, too out-of-the-way. Perales said the governor would like to see the Javits Center replaced by housing and a full plan for West Midtown redevelopment, rather than the partial measures thus far taken. Building the convention center in South Queens would begin with the Genting Group, the Malaysian developer that has built gaming and convention facilities in the Far East and lately turned Aqueduct Race Track into a “racino”. Genting is offering to invest $4 billion in creating the convention center. Genting’s racino is limited to slot machines and horse racing and unlike a casino, which offers roulette and card games. Casino gambling is illegal in New York state and therefore Genting’s $4 billion offer is accompanied by the demand that an amendment to the state constitution be passed allowing casino gambling. The governor is amenable to such an amendment, Perales said.

http://www.qgazette.com/news/2012-02-22/Features/Perales_Explains_Governors_Budget_Racino_Plans.html

Gary Greenberg, a minority owner of Vernon Downs, is doing what he can to get casino gaming legalized in New York.

http://www.rwnewyork.com/about-resorts-world/news-articles/170-taking-stock-in-comos-gambling-proposal
http://romesentinel.com/news?newsid=20120116-142219

The New York Times recently reported that the Council of the District of Columbia repealed iGaming last week over criticism that it had been approved without sufficient public comment or scrutiny.  iGaming was on track to be the first one in the country, and it promised revenue for the district from Texas hold ’em poker, blackjack and bingo.

The District of Columbia and about a half-dozen states have been moving to adopt Internet gambling or have considered doing so. A recent Department of Justice ruling allowed such programs.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/16/us/disputes-end-online-gambling-deal-in-washington-dc.html?_r=1&ref=gambling

The Boston Globe pointed out last week that the Massachusetts granted the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe an eight-month head start to complete a plan for a casino in southeastern Massachusetts. Under the new casino law, if the tribe can acquire land and reach an agreement with the state by the end of July, and the Gaming Commission determines the tribe has clear sailing toward converting that land into a reservation, it automatically wins a casino license. If not, the commission can open up the license to other bidders.

http://bostonglobe.com/opinion/editorials/2012/02/07/state-should-flexible-mashpee-wampanoag-casino-plans/VWV9QuAzofKyIh0hfiGEfK/story.html

And it turns out the Racino is actually good for the Handle at Aquaduct.  The total handle on races is up 6.6 last month, compared with January 2011, according to figures compiled by the New York Racing Association. That includes bets made off premises.

 Wagering increased to $117,842,942 last month from $110,556,714 the prior period — or an increase of more than $7 million.

 Most of that increase was from off-track betting. The total on-track handle was up 1 percent — to $23,428,941 last month compared to $23,190,785 in the prior period.

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/bettor_days_for_aqueduct_oiXY7ZT0TQA23Co7EpWcfI

Local groups are part of a new coalition that wants money from full-scale casinos to benefit racing and agriculture as much as money from existing video gaming sites, like Saratoga Casino & Raceway, has.

http://saratogian.com/articles/2012/02/06/news/doc4f30988405ac6467162053.txt

In Nevada, the largest jurisdiction, gross gaming revenue reached $10.7 billion, a 2.8% rise from 2010. The increase was pegged largely on a resurgence in Las Vegas, which is the biggest city in that market, according to the Nevada Gaming Control Board's annual report released Thursday.

But in the USA's second-biggest market, Atlantic City, gross revenue for last year fell 6.9% to $3.3 billion, according to the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement.

In Pennsylvania, the third-largest market, annual gross gaming revenue topped $3 billion for the first time with a 21.6% increase over 2010, the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board reports. The outsized gain in Pennsylvania can be tied to casino expansion in the state as well as the state's authorization of table games in mid-2010, says Bill Eadington, director of the Institute for the Study of Gambling and Commercial Gaming at the University of Nevada, Reno

Not all of the USA's 22 states with casino gaming have reported their revenue yet for calendar year 2011. But through November, the reported total of $32.56 billion was running 2.3% ahead of the first 11 months of 2010, unaudited data by the American Gaming Association show.

http://www.usatoday.com/money/destinations/travel/story/2012-02-09/Casino-gambling-revenue-shows-uptick-nationally/53029676/1

And, there are BIG Plans afoot for the former Concord Hotel near Monticello.  Of, course, there have been many big plans for a casino at the Concord.  While looking good on paper, the history of trying to get gaming in the Catskills has always been mired and twisted.

http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20120212/NEWS/202120331/-1/SITEMAP

. The recently formed New York Gaming Association — made up of the state’s nine racinos — has been running ads that suggest their locales should be the only places for new casinos. The Seneca Nation of Indians has revved up its marketing efforts, touting the hundreds of millions it has invested and the jobs created at its three casinos in Western New York.

The state gave away exclusive rights to slot machines and video lottery gambling devices in Western New York back in 2002, when then-Gov. George E. Pataki struck a gaming compact with the Seneca Nation. In exchange, the Senecas are required to share a portion of casino revenue with the state. The deal runs through 2016 and can be automatically renewed until 2023.

Seneca leaders say those slotlike machines at the Hamburg, Batavia and Finger Lakes racinos already violate that compact, and they’ve withheld exclusivity payments to the state and local government as the dispute simmers.

http://www.buffalonews.com/city/columns/denise-jewell-gee/article729931.ece

The Equine Industry Supporting Full Casinos in NY

On Monday, February 6, stakeholders from throughout New York State’s racing and agricultural industries announced the formation of a new advocacy group, The New York Horse Racing and Agriculture Industry Alliance, whose mission is to secure support for/protection of these critically important industries in any amendment to New York’s constitution to allow for full-scale commercial casinos.

This new group --- which brings together for the first time New York State horsemen, breeders, farmers and agricultural industry representatives --- is an informational alliance charged with protecting the current and future interests of a horse racing/agriculture industry that is responsible for 40,000 jobs across New York State.

http://www.standardbredcanada.ca/notices/2-6-12/new-alliance-expanded-gaming-ny.html


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http://TowneRyanLaw.com/Michael Rhodes-Devey

Gov. Cuomo out on the Stump for Casino Gambling

Governor Cuomo continues his push for the legalization of Casino Gambling in New York at an appearance at Molloy College on Long Island.  Appearing with Republican Nassau County Executive Ed Mangano, an apparent mutual admiration society, making, as the Long Island Press described it:

quick dispatch of his arguments in favor of building “the largest convention center in the nation” at Aqueduct racetrack as well as legalizing casino gambling in the state. Surprisingly, he did not mention that the key to his plan for this development in Queens is the $4-billion private investment of Genting New York, which already runs a racino there with video slot machines.

“What is a racino?” he asked rhetorically with a grin. “It’s a casino with an ‘R’!” Saying that the state has 29,000 slot machines—“more than Atlantic City”—he explained, “We’re in the business already. Let’s do gaming right in New York State!”

To legalize casino gambling off the Indian reservations, he will need to amend the state constitution. He said he hopes to get the first stage of that process done this year.

http://www.longislandpress.com/2012/02/03/cuomo-brings-budget-reform-road-show-to-molloy/

And Yahoo News is trumpeting the also apparent inevitable onslaught of online gambling in the United States.  This is a very informative article on this issue and worth perusing.

Online gambling -- a sure bet

One thing is abundantly clear -- legalized and regulated online gambling is coming to the United States. The only question is who will be getting rich from it. At the moment, Nevada, New York, Hawaii and Illinois all have online gambling legislation in the works. For bankrupt states and cities, the windfall of tax revenue from internet gaming sites based in their jurisdiction would be a budget-saver. Until now, it looked as if Washington and the others were headed for victory and financial salvation.

State vs. federal

Online gambling is set to be the next fierce political battle between the states and the federal government. According to one councilman from Washington DC who supported the online gambling law, the nation's giant casinos have teamed up with Congress to steal the right, and the revenue, away from the states.

http://news.yahoo.com/states-congress-race-control-online-gambling-203200891.html


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Towne, Ryan & Partners P.C. - "We've got you covered"
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Renegade Casino in Indian Country

Internal Mohawk Politics is much like the great sport that was given to them by the Creator: Lacrosse.  It is a brutal contact sport in which the participants wear little protective gear.  Blood is pretty common.

In a very insightful article in Indian Country Today, the dispute regarding the unlicensed casino on the Mohawk Territory of Akwesasne is explored. The Men’s Council of the Longhouse, who are running the Three Feathers Casino, rejects the authority of the Tribal Government to allow or refuse them authority to operate a casino upon the Territory.  In fact, they reject the authority of the Tribal Government all together.

To the uninitiated, this may appear to be a little bit, how shall I say this, rash?  But the St. Regis Mohawk Territory is the only place on earth that I know of in which it is a perfectly acceptable political statement “Oh, I do not follow or accept the authority of that Government.”  It is a land that proves the maxim that one can only govern with the consent of the governed.

So the Men’s Council opens a Casino in July.  Clearly in violation of Federal and State Law as well as that of the recognized government of the Tribal territory.  Seven months later, the strongest action taken is the issuance of a Cease and Desist Letter by the Tribe.  No FBI, no State Police, no Tribal Police.

The Kanienkehaka Kaianerehkowa Kanonhsesne, The Men’s Council of the People of the Way of the Longhouse, who operate the Three Feathers Casino, has refused to shut down the casino. “The casino is open for business and we will remain open,” Turtle Clan representative Sakoieta (pronounced Sag o wee ta) to the Longhouse Men’s Council told ICTMN. The Longhouse council responded to the cease and desist order with a “Commentary” on January 31, defiantly rejecting the elected government’s authority. “While we claim no dominion over the Territory of Akwesasne, we absolutely reject any claim by you, any agency you attempt to empower or any outside authority that attempts to empower you, to have such either. We genuinely regard only the people to have such authority,” the document says. The commentary was signed by Sakoieta, Wolf Clan representative Rarahkwisere (pronounced La la gwees sulay), and Bear Clan representative Kanaretiio (Gana la deeo).

  *   *   *

Sakoieta told ICTMN that he thought “there would be a riot” if the Longhouse representatives were forced to close the casino’s doors.

http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2012/02/02/mohawk-elected-government-and-traditional-longhouse-council-in-casino-rift-95529


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The Juggernaut

Part of what I am trying to do with this blog, in addition to linking you, the reader, with ongoing and relevant links to news concerning New York Gaming, is to gain some perspective on the larger trends.  In my earlier posts, I marveled at the apparently unimpeded Cuomo Juggernaut driving towards legalized gaming.  Well, here we are a couple of weeks into it and still there does not seem to be much resistance at all.  Most newspapers still seem to be much more concerned with NYRA’s apparent lack of fiscal control then they are with the advent of Casino Gaming, potentially all over the State.

The proposed Constitutional Amendment seems to have no restrictions at all as to number and locations of Casinos, only that they be “regulated by the State.”  That, my friends, can mean anything.

Gaming is producing great revenue for New York, the people like to gamble, and the only problem is can we save NYRA from itself.

Owner of Yonkers Raceway Sees Benefits to NY Tracks

Tim Rooney Jr., general counsel for Yonkers Raceway and Empire City said that “We think that the addition of the gaming and poker games and blackjack would really put us in a position where no one would have to go to the Connecticut casinos or to the New Jersey casinos and we’d be able to offer everything they have.”  He also predicted that this change will also prompt a greater investment in the facilities at Yonkers.

http://www.lohud.com/article/20120128/NEWS02/301280040/Yonkers-Raceway-could-see-new-pot-money-Cuomo-casino-gambling-plan

And it did not take long for the hopes of legalized gaming to stir the plans of the folks in the Catskills either.  The Saugerties Times, a small Hudson Valley newspaper reports that the Court appointed Receiver for the former Neville Hotel is considering the sale of the 433-room hotel on 500 acres to Claremont Investments LLC, a New York-based investment group to be developed as a Casino in the event of legalization within five years.

http://www.saugertiesx.com/2012/01/31/gambling-catskills-table/

The New York Post applauded State Controller DiNapoli for warning NYRA against its ongoing losses.

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/opinion/editorials/the_nyra_money_pit_FkynDmpxYuyGV6eviofe5H

A sentiment shared by the Albany Times Union.

http://blog.timesunion.com/opinion/nyras-choice/17628/

In other news regarding NYRA, Timothy McGinn, a former vice chairman and board member of the New York Racing Association, was charged with fraud on Thursday in an indictment released by prosecutors for the U.S. Attorney’s office in Albany, New York, relating to the operation of his brokerage firm in Albany, New York.

http://www.drf.com/news/mcginn-former-nyra-vice-chairman-charged-fraud

The Journal News of the Lower Hudson Valley, however, is not supportive of Gov. Cuomo’s quest for Casino Gaming.  However, Phil Reisman of the Journal did concede the apparent inevitability of casino gaming in New York.  In the recent editorial, Mr. Reisman stated that: 

But critics say the governor’s glib appraisal masks the dark consequences of gambling — that it brings financial ruin to the lives of countless people, most of whom are desperately poor, often elderly and on fixed incomes. Gambling may add to state coffers, the critics acknowledge, but on the other side of the social equation is an increase in crime, suicide, home foreclosure, divorce, domestic violence and bankruptcy.

However, he did note that the Casino Juggernaut will probably go through regardless. 

Like most big ideas, the devil is in the details. But there are three reasons why Cuomo will get his way.

First, the economy is rotten and that is a major selling point.

Second, the gambling industry will pour millions of dollars into advertising and lobbying campaigns.

And third, the public wants casino gambling and will likely vote to change the state constitution to make it happen.

http://www.lohud.com/article/20120129/COLUMNIST08/301290043/Reisman-column-Cuomo-will-get-legal-casino-gambling-maybe-shouldn-t

In other New York Gaming News, the State Lottery and Racinos have been showing increased revenue during our Great Recession. 

“Sales of traditional lottery games — such as the multistate Powerball and Mega Millions — increased by 2 percent, or by about $73.3 million, between 2010 and 2011. But the largest increase in revenue came from the state’s nine racetracks, which continue to produce record numbers. Jackpots, like Wednesday’s $170 million Powerball game, help generate interest in state-sponsored gambling.”

http://www.poughkeepsiejournal.com/article/20120131/NEWS12/301190003/New-York-s-racetracks-lottery-show-revenue-increase?odyssey=tab%7Ctopnews%7Ctext%7CPoughkeepsieJournal.com

In Massachusetts, some are just beginning to understand that even after the State blesses the concept of an Indian Gaming Facility within the State, it is a long way from opening the doors.

http://articles.boston.com/2012-01-31/metro/31006246_1_indian-tribe-tribal-casino-casino-law

And even then, others want to stop the Native participation before it begins.  KG Urban Enterprises, a developer with sights on a casino in New Bedford argued recently in US District Court that the state’s new casino law gives an unconstitutional advantage to the Mashpee Wampanoag Indian tribe in its pursuit of a gambling resort in Southeastern Massachusetts.

http://bostonglobe.com/metro/2012/02/01/casino-developer-seeks-injunction-over-preference-for-indian-tribe/ctRDSbsAblGF00xP6asvvJ/story.html

And proving that nothing is every easy for government, even if your are an Indian Tribe, the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe has recently closed what they have described as an unauthorized Casino on the Territory.  On January 20, 2012, the Saint Regis Tribal Gaming Commission issued a cease and desist letter to the Three Feathers Casino.  It is unclear whether that Casino did indeed close. 

http://www.standard-freeholder.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=3454469

Three Feathers claims to have a 55,000-square-foot facility, with 400 electronic gambling machines.  It was being operated by Kanienkehaka Kaianerehkowa Kanonhsesne , translated as the Men’s Council of People of the Way of the Longhouse.  This group claims to be People of the Longhouse who follow the traditional Haudenosaunee and do not accept the elected leadership Three Chief Government at St. Regis.  The Haudenosaunee would be the traditional Iroquois Confederacy of the Six Nations.

http://500nations.com/casinos/nyThreeFeathersCasino.asp

In other news, The Post reported that the New York State Racing and Wagering Board this week adopted a rule that all jockeys must take a breathalyzer test the day they ride, and won’t be allowed to ride if the test measures a blood-alcohol content of .05 or higher.

http://www.nypost.com/p/sports/horse_racing/through_the_binocs_80OtOIyCBqJaKdI413zhMK#ixzz1lAEmJJ2g

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Towne, Ryan & Partners P.C. - "We've got you covered"
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