Lots on Slots
A California judge this week “denied a request to halt California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s new gambling compacts with five Indian tribes,” making passage of the November ballot initiative to put 30,000 slot machines in state racetracks even less likely (Blood-Horse). New York tracks face a different challenge: “A state appeals court ruled on Wednesday that the law allowing racetracks to install slot-machine-like video lottery terminals is unconstitutional” (New York Times). And while the new Pennsylvania law is a victory for that state’s industry, its effects will be felt on tracks across the Northeast. Andrew Beyer frets about the future of racing in Maryland, where slot legislation was rejected this year (Washington Post). Maryland won’t be the only state affected though, “If the projections hold, Pennsylvania will become one of the most lucrative attractions for horses in North America…. That would put enormous pressure on horse populations from Massachusetts to Florida and set off pitched competitions among tracks to draw runners” (Daily Racing Form).
Comment: Like Beyer, I’m most concerned with the effects of the Pennsylvania law on my local track. Already Suffolk Downs is struggling with a shortened meet and cheap purses. “If we don’t get slots in the next two or three years, that could be it for Suffolk,” trainer Carlos Figueroa told the Boston Globe on March 19, and Robert O’Malley, the track’s chief operating officer, agreed with his assessment: “That’s probably right … The land is prime real estate.” A law allowing slots at tracks was squashed last year, and the issue isn’t even on the legislative agenda this year. Let’s hope legislators revisit the matter before it’s too late.
Related: “When is the House leadership, which has blocked slots at the state’s four racetracks, including Suffolk Downs and Wonderland Park, going to wake up and bring the beef and the jobs back to Massachusetts? When are our rank-and-file legislators going to insist that the leadership do so?” (The Daily Item of Lynn)
