Posted by Let Texans Decide
Jan 02, 2013
We hope that everyone had a merry holiday season and happy New Year! Over the holidays, Let Texans Decide spokesman John Montford was featured in two articles addressing expanded gaming’s role in the upcoming Texas legislative session, which begins on Tuesday, January 8. To read each article in full, you can visit Austin American Statesman and San Antonio Express-News. Here are some highlights from each:
Statesman: “Since June, Montford has been traveling around the state and talking to voters on behalf of his group, which is made up interests that wanted slot machines at racetracks last session. He said most of them recognize that a lot of Texans are going to gamble, and when they do, many of them will take their money to legal casinos in neighboring states, such as Oklahoma and Louisiana. ‘We’re hemorrhaging money to other states,’ Montford said. ‘Why not regulate it, sanction it and put some money in the treasury?’”
“Though the Las Vegas casinos have not formally organized, most of their interests seem to be aligned, said John Pitts, a lobbyist representing Wynn. ‘The gaming industry appears to be more united than in past sessions,’ Pitts said.”
“Miller, a founding partner in HillCo Partners LLC, a lobbying firm that has never had any gambling clients, said he expects gambling interests to present their case in earnest during the regular session, but he said they also have their eye on the future. The gambling proponents have ‘read the tea leaves’ and know that a court could order the state to provide more money for public education. And if the state is in search of new revenue, gambling interests could be in a good position to pass a bill, Miller said. ‘It’s an opportunity,’ he said. ‘A golden one, actually.’”
Express-News: “Possibilities for gambling expansion include existing racetracks and tribal lands, Montford said, potentially along with some casinos in major metropolitan areas and on the Texas coast. The parameters would be set by the Legislature, Montford said, and the bottom line is Texans should get a chance to vote.”
“Sen. Leticia Van de Putte, D-San Antonio, is among lawmakers who would be comfortable with slots at tracks, saying she sees senior citizens taking casino trips every two weeks. ‘How come it is OK for someone to risk large amounts of money in the stock market … but it’s not OK for my mother and my aunt to take $100 of their own spending money’ for a bit of gambling? she asked.”
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