Kentucky needs a lot of things, but we certainly do not need slot machines and casinos. Slot machines are called one-armed bandits for good reason: the house always wins. The house will be the racetracks and out-of-state gamBLing (sic) corporations, not the citizens of Kentucky, not the treasury of the Commonwealth, and definitely not the gamblers, and probably not even the majority of the people involved in the thoroughbred agribusiness in our state.

Kentucky racetracks and the huge gambling conglomerates want everyone see slot machines as a cash cow for the strapped revenue resources of the Commonwealth, and to help Kentucky's "signature" agribusiness, the thoroughbred farms. In reality it is the quickest way to lose one's shirt yet to be invented and the most addictive form of gambling, creating twice as many pathological and problem gamblers as any other form of gambling activity (National Opinion Research Center NORC, 1999).

Slots are designed to be played quickly, repetitively, and with a minimum of thought. Speed sells. Speed kills. Are some of our citizens expendable simply because we allow temptation to be put in their path and the state does everything it can to persuade them to believe that the Lottery or the tinkle of coins in a slot machine will transform their lives and be an easy replacement for the far more valuable tools of education and responsibility? Shall we change the state's current slogan "Education Pays" to "Education??? -Luck Pays!"?

In fact, it will be the racetracks, and the stockholders of the companies that own them-Churchill Downs; Harrahs-one of the biggest gambling conglomerates in the US; G-Tech, who manufactures most of the VLTs in this country; and Keeneland-who will stand to take millions of dollars from coffers of legitimate, everyday businesses and families in Kentucky, if they succeed in their attempts to get slots at the tracks. An object lesson might be Delta Downs in Louisiana, which was purchased in 1999 for $10 million, and then, following legislation to permit slot machines, sold about 18 months later to Boyd Gaming for $125 million. Similar gains could be made by track stockholders in Kentucky. Churchill Downs stock is already rising rapidly on the very wobbly assumption that they are going to get slots.

The tracks have lots of money and have been able to get the ear of Chambers of Commerce and legislators. They tell the story their way. The other side of the issue and the real facts about economic impact of slots and casinos need to be made known. The thoroughbred tracks in Kentucky have shown profits in the past year, in spite of the recession, with the exception of Turfway. On Feb. 12, Churchill Downs, Inc., reported record earnings and revenues last year, despite the national recession and the energy crisis in California, home of one of the company's major tracks. Can't compete? The Louisville racetrack reported nine percent increase in handle during its 24 day fall meet. This appears to be very successful competition. Ellis Racetrack (owned by Churchill Downs) at Henderson, and Keeneland are managing to show growth in their handle despite the riverboats. Turfway, under various managers and when it was formerly known as Latonia Race Course, has always had trouble making ends meet. Why should the state prop up what has been a losing business for decades by allowing them a windfall monopoly? Further, while crying hard times, Churchill Downs' PAC contributions to the election treasuries of legislators are 7 times what they were in 2000. The last minute contributions to legislators right before the session started may have been legal, but they left a rank odor nonetheless. Do we want gambling PAC money to control-as it does in many states with expanded gambling-- or even have an impact on Kentucky politics? Remember Boptrot?

Second, slot machines to do not provide easy, tax-free money. In fact, slot machines represent a kind of business that states feel they may tax at much higher rates. Thus, we are talking about a new tax, because it represents a formerly prohibited form of business that the state now wants to permit, but which will be taxed at a very high rate.

The advocates of expanded gambling have tried to tar CAGE with the "tax brush", suggesting that we advocate raising taxes. CAGE has said no such thing. Instead we argue that it is government's responsibility to determine and legislate for equitable, efficient, stable, and adequate revenue, as recommended by the Kentucky Long Term Policy Research Center in its study on financing state and local governments.

CAGE does not believe that expanded gambling will provide for an equitable stream of revenue, because it is, however voluntary, still a tax. It is not efficient because it requires enormous regulatory oversight. It is not stable, as demonstrated by the state of Indiana's experience, and, as the gambling market becomes more and more saturated, it will provide less and less adequate revenues, complicated by the decline of revenues generated by taxes on other parts of the economy.

Indiana has 10 riverboats. Indiana has a revenue shortfall twice the size of Kentucky's. In fact, many of the states with slot machines or casinos face larger deficits than we do. Where is all this easy money? State governments get dependent on the tax revenue from gambling, and need more and more and more and more of it for their various state projects. Prudent planning for equitable, efficient, stable, and adequate revenues is no longer the order of the day. Instead, state government is financed on the backs of financial losses by its citizens. What a sad commentary that is: in order for government to provide its services, it needs its citizens to lose their hard earned money.

Third, given the failure or the unwillingness of the tracks to make their proposal public, it is likely that legislation to expand gambling will be passed in the dark of night, without ever having had any hearings, buried in other legislation. We are more than a third of the way through the session, and if this legislation was going to be so good for the whole state, it would have been filed and hearings would be scheduled. The only way that the racetracks can get their monopoly of slots at the tracks and off-track-betting parlors is to attach their proposal to other legislation, such as the budget bill. The budget bill will include such things as teacher pay-raises, money for mental health and programs for the mentally retarded, along with other needed projects, all dependent upon projected (but hypothetical) income from slots at the tracks. Legislators will be able to say that they did not vote for expanded gambling, but in order to get good things such as pay raises for teachers, they had to vote for the whole package. This subterfuge will constitute the worst and most despicable act of political chicanery ever pulled on the citizens of Kentucky.

The racetracks have piled on the lobbyists and they roam the halls in Frankfort like vampires just waiting for the right moment when they can suck the blood out of the public's obvious opposition to expanded gambling. They clutch their proposal, upon which they say they have reached agreement, to their chest as if they were playing some game of poker, rather than being above-board with legislation that will affect all Kentuckians for decades to come. If they believe their cause is just, why the secrecy? Let us all see it so that it can be discussed and debated fairly, not foisted upon the people of Kentucky at the last minute.

This is sneaky politics, and the people of this state, and our nation, rightfully despise it. If my scenario unfolds, the people of Kentucky will not look kindly upon horseracing as something to be proud of in Kentucky.
Finally, the majority of Kentuckians do not want expanded gambling: no slots at the tracks and no casinos dotted around the state. A poll of 600 registered voters in Kentucky from every county in the state and in proportion to voter registration figures, conducted in mid-December by Ayres, McHenry & Associates, Inc., a national public opinion and public affairs research firm located in Atlanta, showed that 64% of Kentuckians oppose allowing race tracks to have a monopoly on expanded gambling; 52% oppose allowing casinos to be built in different parts of the state away from the racetracks; a whopping 68% oppose video slot machines at any place that sells lottery tickets; and 66% oppose allowing VLTs at any place that has a liquor license.

CAGE has made the results of this poll available to the press and allowed the pollsters to be questioned. Meanwhile, the racetracks are claiming that they have a poll, that no one has seen, no one knows who conducted, and that has no other information with it, that says that 60% of Kentuckians would support VLTs at the race tracks if the proceeds went for such things as health insurance for children and prescription drug assistance for seniors. If you dangle enough golden carrots in front of people, they will answer the question the way you want it answered. Kentuckians should ask Churchill Downs, Keeneland, and Turfway to show us the rest of the poll. Otherwise, the media should cease even giving it any credence at all. Legislators should pay more attention to a real poll that tells them that half of their constituents, and an astounding 82% of people who attend church regularly, say they will be disinclined to vote for any politician who supports expanded gambling.

New Hampshire's legislature has just said no to slots at the tracks, despite having severe financial problems with their state revenues. Kentucky can say "No" also. Kentuckians do not want VLTs anywhere-not at the tracks and we don't want casinos in our backyards. We don't care to create more problems for our state than we already have. We would rather do something constructive for all our citizens, not just the stockholders at Harrahs, G-Tech, and Churchill Downs.

Citizens Against Gambling Expansion