H I S T O R Y    O F    G A M B L I N G    I N    C T

T H E    L E A G U E    W A T C H E S    W H A T    I S    G O I N G   O N    I N    H A R T F O R D  .   A   C L O S E    E Y E    O N    T H E    C . G . A .

MORE CASINO DEPARTMENT:  http://www.stamfordadvocate.com/local/article/Some-bets-are-off-at-New-York-state-casinos-12220960.php

BREAKING NEWS SINCE BUDGET PASSES...SEPTEMBER 16, 2017, 3AM

What's this?  B.I.A. not sure about East Windsor?    http://www.ctnewsjunkie.com/archives/entry/bia_letter_creates_more_questions_than_answers/
News of the day:
 
https://ctmirror.org/2017/09/18/mgm-pitches-bridgeport-casino-as-feds-delay-tribes-expansion/
From the newspaper of record:  http://www.courant.com/business/hc-bridgeport-casino-mgm-steelpointe-20170918-story.html

BREAKING NEWS SINCE END OF LONG SESSION:
  From CTNEWSJUNKIE, June 21st: http://www.courthousenews.com/mgms-connecticut-casino-wrangle-crashes-appeal/

"...That means MGM would be unable to building a casino in most Connecticut municipalities, except for the ones in the southwestern portion of the state nearest to New York..."

ANOTHER UPDATE IN THE NEWS
After the Long Session ends June 7 without completing work on the budget...below what to take into consideration...
Beware the IMPLEMENTER    - bill numbers might not be relevant in this case - it will be a couple of lines in a 600 page laundry list.  (NOTE:  Democrat version 925pp and GOP had @1000pp)
AS OF MAY 6, 2017 - TWO BILLS ALIVE:  One, to allow the mini-casino in East Windsor (in an abandoned movie theater);  number two is to allow a state-wide RFP for a casino off-reservation.  Preferably in Bridgeport (or Danbury)
Finance, Revenue & Bonding Public Heating April 17
Senator Hwang stands up against increasing casino gambling opportunities:  http://www.ct-n.com/ctnplayer.asp?odID=13669
Unable To Quantify With Precision, Jepsen Said Risk of Tribal Exclusivity Is ‘Not Insubstantial’ CTNEWSJUNKIE:  http://www.ctnewsjunkie.com/archives/entry/unable_to_quantify_with_precision_jepsen_said_risk_of_tribal_exclusivity_is/
The official letter to the Governor:  http://www.ctnewsjunkie.com/upload/2017/03/2017-02_ag_casino_opinion_to_governor.pdf








Picture story: 


WELCOME TO WESTON TOWN HALL, SIDE ENTRANCE.
It had stopped raining around the time LWV of Weston video team arrived...did we mention that Weston's colors are green and green?

  

THE STAGE WAS SET.
Flowers fresh from a LWV member's garden, hand carved version of the Town of Weston Seal and then Weston First Selectman Nina Daniel opened the program.
    

THE PRIMARY SPEAKER
Former Congressman Bob Steele, who eventually settled in Ledyard, CT (pre-Foxwoods) gave a remarkable history of the curse of gambling in Connecticut.

 

SENATOR TONY HWANG
The leading opponent of more gambling in the state gave a full and detailed description of bills that have been brought to the floor of the C.G.A. so far.  But he warned the next weeks are crucial to making sure the Legislature understands  why more gambling is not the way out of any fiscal morass.



FIRST QUESTION:
Why doesn't the Legislature admit taxes have to go up?  Answer was, maybe they do - but not until government at the State of CT level runs more efficiently (giving examples of waste and inefficiency now).

 

SECOND QUESTION AND DOING A RUNNING STORY ON FACEBOOK AS THE MEETING PROGRESSED!
How can people be made to understand the points about negative consequesnces if government is complicit in papering them over?  (I think this was the question from this individual [will check it out when we watch the video later today].) 
     
 

PREVIOUS SPEAKER MAY HAVE COMPARED THE STOCK MARKET TO A CASINO...OR KENO?
Begging to differ, next questioner asked for clarification of the parallel - perhaps, it was noted, the online "games" have similarity to day trading online?

  

WHAT WILL HAPPEN?
Eyes wide open, the next questioners wondered how anyone can know what is going happen and how it will turn out???

       

WHAT CAN WESTONITES DO?
Answer: WRITE TO YOUR LEGISLATORS!!!  Remind them there are no current cost estimates for the negative impacts of casino gambling - which is slot machines nowadays.  Women over the age of 50 are the biggest players.

  

AND THEN THE MEETING WAS OVER - A BIT AFTER 12 NOON



"Thanks" to LWV of Weston, says First Selectman!








L E A G U E    H I S T O R Y

LWVCT  Convention 1993...
Weston LWV's proposal was subject to caucus as a non-recommended item, and prevailed on the floor.  Leading to LWVCT taking a position, after state-wide meetings and study...against extensions of forms of gambling.



OFF-RESERVATION GAMBLING:  In Connecticut in 2017?  Which bill is up for hearing Apr. 17?       Where does the LWVCT stand on the issue?

Contents:  7319 - bill did not pass in Long Session of 2017.

QUICK LINKS:  Sample news from 20132012201120031994.

LWVCT concurrence 1994
Las Vegas nights 2003
Online gambling
Extending gambling
Keno




OP-ED| Keno: Out Of Sight, Out Of Mind
CTNEWSJUNKIE
by Terry D. Cowgill | Sep 6, 2013 5:30am

It says a lot about a piece of legislation when, as the Connecticut General Assembly is wont to do, lawmakers act at the last moment, hold no public hearings, and pass it in the wee hours of the morning.

Such is the case with this year’s budget package, which featured language legalizing keno, a highly addictive video numbers game that essentially offers a new lottery every five minutes. The budget passed the Democratic-controlled General Assembly largely along party lines. The Keno provision was an open secret among lawmakers and the casinos that stand to profit from the expansion of gambling in the state. For obvious reasons (perhaps the odious nature of the product in a state that’s already too dependent on gambling revenues?) the public was kept in the dark.

Adding insult to injury, however, is that, as of early this month, the secrecy continues. We still know very little about when or where the game will be played. We know only that by next year keno could be played at about 600 different locations in our tiny state, including restaurants, taverns, and establishments already licensed to sell lottery tickets.

On the legal side, it looks like the state’s two Indian casinos, which claim exclusive rights to casino-style gambling, are on board with the plan, thanks to what amounts to a bribe from the legislature that shares 12.5 percent of the keno take with each tribe. The state is expected to collect an estimated $31 million during the first two years of keno. And unlike the lottery or the gross receipts tax, there’s no pretending the proceeds will go toward a popular cause such as education or transportation. No, the new revenue will go straight into the general fund to help close a chronic budget gap.

A recent lottery board meeting adjourned to executive session when talk turned to keno. And officials refused to answer questions from attendees and reporters after emerging from behind closed doors. Frank Farricker, chairman of the Lottery Board of Directors, told my editor Christine Stuart there had been some limited open discussions of keno at the June board and subcommittee meetings, but I can’t find any record of them online.

[Please read the rest of this article in the archives at the CT NEWS JUNKIE website]



Concern For Casino Jobs Fuels Malloy's Pursuit Of Online Gambling

Rick Green, Hartford Courant
8:36 PM EST, January 9, 2012

The all-out sprint for more gambling is on, with Gov. Dannel P. Malloy signaling he doesn't want Connecticut left at the starting gate.

We've got more than enough state-sanctioned opportunities for people to lose money, but Malloy is probably right when he says that outlook is irrelevant now that the federal Department of Justice has given the OK to turning computers and mobile devices into virtual casinos. It's hideous, but that won't stop it from coming to your local Internet connection.

Within a year, online gambling, up to now both illegal and popular, is likely to be everywhere, or at least in the many states that will likely choose to legalize it. This could mean logging on for blackjack, poker or slot machine-style games, not to mention making a trip to the convenience store for a lottery ticket kind of like buying an actual newspaper.

The more interesting question now becomes how aggressive will the Malloy administration be when it comes to growing gambling and protecting what are two of the world's largest and most profitable casinos. Having a substantial online operation will be essential for casinos to be successful in the future, industry insiders say.

As gambling expands in neighboring states in coming years, Connecticut will likely lose thousands of its bricks-and-mortar casino patrons from Massachusetts and New York, while the gambling meccas of New Jersey and Nevada move quickly into online gambling.

[Please read the rest of this article in the archives at the Hartford COURANT website]




McKinney: Online Gaming Far from Inevitable
Hartford Courant
By DANIELA ALTIMARI
5:34 PM EST, January 9, 2012

Senate Minority Leader John McKinney is taking issue with Gov. Dannel P. Malloy's assertion that online gambling is inevitable in Connecticut.

"I'm going to be looking at what we can do to prevent this from happening,'' McKinney said late this afternoon.

Earlier, Malloy suggested that a recent Department of Justice legal opinion opening the door for online gambling will lead states across the nation to jump aboard.

"We're going to have Internet gambling in Massachusetts, in Connecticut, in Rhode Island, in California, in Nevada and Mississippi and Alabama and I could go through all 50 states because the Internet is the Internet,'' Malloy said. "You don't turn off the Internet at any state's borders," Malloy said.

McKinney said Congress could step in and prevent that. "We are talking about a legal opinion from an attorney in the Department of Justice,'' he said. "Certainly Congress could say were going to change our laws and make sure that’s not happening. I would encourage our members of Congress to do that.''

But even if Congress doesn't act and other states begin offering online gambling options, that doesn't mean Connecticut can't regulate it, McKinney said. "It's our job to stand up for the health and safety of our citizens. We can take a position,'' he said.

[Please read the rest of this article in the archives at the Hartford COURANT website]


Gov. Malloy: State Can't Stop Online Gambling
Hartford Courant
By DANIELA ALTIMARI
10:41 AM EST, January 9, 2012

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy is bristling at the suggestion that he's bringing online gambling to the state.


"I think there is a level of misunderstanding about online gambling and its prospects in the state of Connecticut," Malloy said during a brief press conference at the legislative office building earlier this morning.

"It is quite clear that Internet gaming is coming to Connecticut. Period. It's coming,''the governor said.

Malloy's remarks, which came at the end of a press conference about storm preparedness, were in response to a U.S. Department of Justice ruling made public last month.

The ruling eases the way for online lottery sales and online gambling.

[Please read the rest of this article in the archives at the Hartford COURANT website]




For those who might want to know who will be in charge of gambling in CT...no longer.
Ken Flatto to join Malloy administration
CT POST
Published 10:25 a.m., Tuesday, March 22, 2011

FAIRFIELD -- First Selectman Ken Flatto is joining the Malloy administration as the Executive Director of the Division of Special Revenue.

The division is responsible for managing various special revenues and for regulating legalized gaming in the State of Connecticut, including the Lottery and Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun.

"Ken will bring his 30 years of experience as a financial and accounting manager to this integral position," said Governor Malloy. "Although we are trying to maximize revenue that comes into the state, we always need to be mindful that it does not come at the expense of our state's citizens."

[Please read the rest of this article in the archives at the CT POST website]



SPECIAL SESSION - ACTION JANUARY 6, 2003

Las Vegas Nights Are Gone;  Legislature Repeals Law; Rowland Expected To Concur

January 7, 2003 - By RICK GREEN, Courant Staff Writer

Alarmed at the growing likelihood of more Indian casinos, state legislators repealed the state's Las Vegas nights law Monday - despite claims their dramatic action will do little to block the spread of gambling in Connecticut.

The vote came at a special session after lengthy delay tactics by urban legislators who support Indian casinos, who talked for hours Monday afternoon and into the
evening in a futile effort to derail the bill outlawing Las Vegas nights. Supporters of the repeal say it will allow the two existing Indian casinos to operate while outlawing future casinos operated by other tribes; opponents say Connecticut must prohibit all forms of gambling if it wants to stop casinos.

"If this is so meaningless, why all the rhetoric and all the effort to stop this repeal from happening?" said Jeff Benedict, president of the Connecticut Alliance Against
Casino Expansion. "It isn't meaningless."

In the state House, legislators voted 83-59 to repeal the law, with most legislators from cities voting against. In the Senate, which convened in special session after hours of House debate, the tally was 25-10 to repeal. The vote came a dozen years after the legislature rejected an attempt to repeal the Las Vegas nights law, which could have blocked the opening of Foxwoods Resort Casino.

"I voted to repeal 12 years ago. It's nice to have a change this time around," said state Rep. Jefferson Davis, D-Pomfret. "Nobody can predict what the courts are going to say. It is the only step we have available to us now."

[Please read the rest of this article in the archives at the Hartford COURANT website]




Way back in 1993 the LWV of Weston proposed and was successful in persuading Convention to do a Concurrence with LWV of Pennsylvania to oppose additional forms of gambling, and concurrence was reached on the following position effective 1994: