Commission urges curbs on contributions by gambling industry

The Associated Press

SAN FRANCISCO -- Nearing the end of its work, a federal commission on gambling urged states to curb political contributions from companies in the gambling business.

If carried out in state legislatures across the country, Wednesday's recommendation could choke off a large source of money for state and local campaigns. The commission also left intact a controversial section saying governments "may wish to impose an explicit moratorium on gambling expansion while awaiting further research and assessment." By a 6-3 vote, the National Gambling Impact Study Commission approved language recommending that states "adopt tight restrictions on contributions to state and local campaigns by entities -- corporate, private or tribal -- that have applied for or have been granted the privilege of operating gambling facilities." The recommendation is a watered-down version of New Jersey's ban on political contributions from casino interests, their employees and agents. It came as members of the commission sat down to complete work on a report that commission members will vote on this week and then release to the White House, Congress and others on June 18. Commissioner Richard Leone, a former New Jersey state treasurer who proposed the recommendation on political donations, said he would have preferred a ban covering individuals as well as companies, and federal races as well as state and local ones. But he said he settled for what was possible. "It's half a loaf, but it's a tasty loaf," Leone said. New Jersey's law has been upheld in state court. Still, Alan Feldman, a spokesman for Mirage Resorts, predicted legal challenges to any new laws singling out the gambling industry. "We would love to see across-the-board campaign finance reform. The system is out of control," Feldman said. "But we don't like the discriminatory overtones this specific recommendation suggests." The vote resolved one of the final major issues confronting the nine-person commission after two years of work. Gambling interests have become prodigious donors at the state and federal levels. The National Institute on Money in State Politics says that in 10 states it has studied so far, gambling interests gave more than $1.5 million in the 1997-98 election cycle. The Center for Responsive Politics reported the gambling industry donated more than $6.2 million to federal candidates and parties in the 1997-98 election cycle, twice what it gave during the previous midterm elections. And Common Cause, a group that advocates campaign finance reform, reported that from May through July 1996, as Congress was shaping the powers of the gambling commission itself, gambling interests gave $1.6 million in unregulated "soft money" to both parties -- more than 13 times more than in a comparable period in 1994. Commissioner Robert Loescher, an American Indian and Alaska businessman, said curbing campaign contributions means stifling free expression. "I think the American way is to put up your best ideas and let them win in the court of public opinion," he said. The commission went into its final meetings with dozens of recommendations already decided, including a nationwide minimum age of 21 to place bets, less aggressive state lottery advertising and more funding of programs to treat gambling addicts. At a meeting in April, the commission split 5-4 in approving the language urging state and local governments to consider a moratorium on more lottery games, casinos and slot machines. Pro-gambling commissioners who opposed that language chose not to reopen the issue Wednesday. On Wednesday, the commission adopted a recommendation calling for a federal agency to gather information each year on state lottery operations, including demographic statistics on who plays and how much they spend. Commission chairwoman Kay James said the nine-member commission doesn't need to reach consensus on every idea. But she said she hopes for an overall report that is "acceptable to every member." The draft report says the commission's nine members "unanimously agree that there is a need for a 'pause' in the growth of gambling." But it later adds: "It is clear that the American people want legalized gambling, and it has already sunk deep economic and other roots in many communities. Its form and extent may change -- it may even disappear -- but for the present, it's a reality."

Copyright 1999
Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights Reserved.