IL Gambling Expansion: Andy Shaw Voices BGA’s Concerns in Aug. 4 Chicago Tribune

Earlier this summer, the BGA began shining a light on controversial legislation in Springfield that would dramatically expand gaming in Illinois. To push the process toward more transparency, and to better educate the public, we:

• hosted a standing-room-only idea forum;
• compiled an Illinois Gaming Expansion FAQ;
• polled more than 1,000 blog readers; and
• this morning our President and CEO Andy Shaw added our voice to Voice of the People in the Chicago Tribune.

Here’s the full-version:

Before Expanding Gambling, Let’s Get All the Facts

By Andy Shaw, president & CEO,  BGA

Flickr--Zdenko Zivkovic

In the final days of the spring legislative session the Illinois General Assembly passed a bill authorizing a massive expansion of gambling in Illinois that includes a city-owned casino in Chicago, casinos in four other locations and the installation of slot machines in airports and racetracks.

Senate Bill 744 is expected to reach Gov. Pat Quinn’s desk in the next month, and supporters are hoping that he signs it into law by October. The Better Government Association is not among them.

The BGA agrees with numerous critics of the bill, including the Tribune and the chairman of the Illinois Gaming Board, that this is a deeply flawed piece of legislation that should not become law until a much-needed fact-finding mission is completed.

The potential ramifications of the bill should be addressed, analyzed, discussed and debated openly and thoroughly so it’s better understood by the governor and the public. That, unfortunately, never happened in the rush-to-passage at the end of the legislative session.

For the record, the BGA is not ideologically opposed to an expansion of gambling, or a Chicago casino.

But the BGA is troubled by the hurried process that churned out a mammoth bill of breathtaking proportions. As a result the BGA proposes:

• Forming an independent, fact-finding group. The governor should immediately appoint a review board, task force or commission mandated by Executive Order to explore the economic and social implications of SB 744. The group should produce a comprehensive report before the bill arrives on Quinn’s desk.
• Soliciting meaningful public input. The legislature dealt the public out of this hand. Although the gambling expansion issue is not new to Illinois, SB 744 smacks of a “rush to judgment” that was passed without adequate due diligence. Public hearings should definitely be an integral part of the governor’s fact-finding task force.
• Providing credible, independent economic research. There is a dismal lack of trustworthy economic research and data behind this bill, and it’s irresponsible not to assess its impact on Chicago and other communities throughout Illinois. The public deserves direct answers to some simple but crucial questions, including: What is the economic impact of new casinos around the state and the addition of so many more slot machines? What is the market demand for more gaming in Chicago and downstate markets and cities, especially now that video poker has been green-lighted by the Illinois Supreme Court? How many new jobs will really be created by the expansion? And what kind of jobs? Will state revenues actually increase or just be shifted away from other entertainment venues? What are the anticipated social costs?
  Governor Quinn should marshal the resources of his government, including the Departments of Revenue and Commerce and Economic Development, along with experts from state universities and research from other states and municipalities to provide credible answers. Relying on outdated research, or studies produced by partisan forces, makes for bad decisions.
• Explaining the risks to taxpayers. SB744 enables the City of Chicago to own a casino license. What are the risks to the city’s “shareholders”–the taxpayers–if a casino runs into financial trouble or goes bust? At the end of the day, would taxpayers be forced to bail out a failed casino? What are the rewards to the taxpayers of a city-owned casino? The people have a right to know their level of exposure or return on investment from this bill.
• Protecting against crime. Will the public be properly protected from the criminal activity and influence that always seem to surface when gambling is involved? Can and will the state invest the resources needed to regulate, investigate and oversee the gambling concerns that enter or expand in Illinois?

These are essential questions that merit thoughtful examination in the context of the additional strain the expansion would place on the state’s existing gambling regulatory system. Aaron Jaffe, the head of the Illinois Gaming Board, the state’s top gaming regulator, has voiced serious doubts about SB744 and questions the ability of his agency to properly scrutinize more gaming vendors while also overseeing the legalization of video poker in other parts of the state.

To address these serious concerns, the BGA is recommending Gov. Quinn act fast and get the pertinent information and real answers necessary to complete the fact-finding process the General Assembly failed to deliver.

Absent credible, reliable and satisfactory data to support each of these preconditions, the Governor should take whatever steps are necessary to prevent this bill from becoming law.

Statewide update—March 18, 2011

Peoria Journal Star—State Senate Republicans outline budget cut options, “Illinois Senate Republicans Thursday outlined $6.7 billion in possible state budget cuts, including steep reductions in education assistance, tightening eligibility for Medicaid and changing pension benefits for state employees.”

• State Journal Register—House committee passes gambling expansion bill, “Illinois’ six horse-race tracks could have slot machines, while riverboat casinos would pay lower taxes, be allowed to move onto land and be permitted to set up more gaming positions under a proposal that cleared a House committee Thursday.”

• Trib Local (Grayslake)—School board member accused of trying to get info on teachers who attended pro-union rallies, “A Grayslake school board on Wednesday censured one of its members for allegedly trying to get the password to a district computer system to find out how many teachers were absent from class so they could  attend pro-union rallies in Madison during Wisconsin’s recent legislative struggle over its budget.”

• (AP) State Journal Register—Quinn to seek higher fees on nuclear generators, “Gov. Pat Quinn says he plans to seek higher fees on power generator Exelon Corp. to ensure the safety of Illinois nuclear power plants in the aftermath of Japan’s nuclear crisis.”

Statewide Update—Jan. 4, 2011

• Chicago Sun Times—CPS funds were spent on bug sweeps, booze, “The Chicago Public Schools’ inspector general is questioning more than $800,000 in spending under two former school board presidents — from $3,000 to check the board’s offices for “eavesdropping devices” to $12,624 for holiday parties at a president’s home.”

• State Journal-Register—Proposal would tie state spending to Illinois personal income, “The amendment’s sponsor, House Speaker Michael Madigan, D-Chicago, said it is only natural to tie any spending increases to personal income increases because much of the state’s revenue – income and sales taxes – is tied to how much its citizens earn.”

• The Southern—Gambling expansion on hold, “A vote on the expansion, which would add five new casinos and legalize slot machines at horse racing tracks, had been scheduled for a House committee Monday, but state Rep. Lou Lang, D-Skokie, said more closed-door talks are needed.”

• State Journal-Register—New push starts for cigarette tax increase, “Anti-smoking groups renewed their push for a $1-a-pack increase in the state’s cigarette tax on Monday, pointing to research showing that the state would see $377 million in new revenue the first year of the tax increase.”

• Daily Herald—Lake County forest board eyeing land buy, “It would grow the preserve to about 315 acres.”

• (AP) State Journal-Register—Senate committee begins education reform hearings, “An Illinois Senate committee is hearing differing opinions on how to reform public education… A similar House committee has already conducted several hearings.”

• Southtown Star—Rich Central dean draws suspension, “The Rich Central High School dean who sparked controversy when she held a party where a photo of a former principal was burned in effigy was suspended and given a warning letter by Rich Township High School District 227 officials…”