The Register-Herald, Beckley, West Virginia

Local News

November 29, 2007

Delegate upset over racetrack rule change

Mannix Porterfield

CHARLESTON — A longtime foe of gambling says the deck is stacked against her and others in the Legislature opposed to giving the West Virginia Lottery Commission full power in dealing with racetrack wagering without any interference from lawmakers.

A major hurdle was cleared this week when the Legislative Rule-Making Committee gave its blessing to a change in Section 179-8-9 of the State Code so that the commission could waive or alter any “requirement or procedure that is impractical or burdensome.”

From a practical standpoint, Delegate Kelli Sobonya, R-Cabell, sees this as an opportunity for the tracks to get anything they want from an accommodating lottery commission — a point Delegate John Overington, R-Berkeley, tried to hammer at the panel’s tumultuous airing on the rule change.

“He feels like the lottery commission has been a rubber stamp,” Sobonya said.

“It has never denied the racetracks an increase in slot machines. Everything they’ve asked, it has always rubber-stamped it, even though at public hearings, people are against it.”

Sobonya sought to delay any vote on the rule change, pointing out lawmakers will be back in interims Dec. 9-11.

“Those two weeks wouldn’t have hurt anything,” she said. “We wanted to have more scrutiny on it. The funny thing is, we laid over three bills that dealt with ... other contentious issues, so why not this one? I just couldn’t believe it.”

Sobonya demanded a roll-call vote because the rule change would hand the commission unfettered powers to deal with the racetracks one-on-one as it sees fit.

“It’s carte blanche,” she said.

Sobonya pointed to Commissioner John Musgrave’s comments at a racing symposium at the University of Arizona, where he described his agency’s dealing with tracks as a “partnership.”

“We get together usually over dinner,” he said. “We find that’s the best atmosphere.”

Sobonya found his comments disturbing, saying, “You have a government agency that’s supposed to be regulating and overseeing an industry saying publicly they have a unique relationship. I have a problem with that.”

Even with committee approval, the rule still must pass through the entire legislative process, but Sobonya suggested opposition by her and Overington before the House Judiciary Committee would be an exercise in futility, and, like sheep, most members would fall in line with the leadership.

— E-mail:

mannix@register-herald.com

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