• E-mail
• Print
• Comment
• Font Size
• Digg
• del.icio.us
• Discuss article

Lawmakers Target Slots: House and Senate Leaders Proposed Bills to Prevent Miami-Dade From Voting a Second Time on Bringing Slot Machines to Race Tracks

Posted on: Friday, 10 March 2006, 06:00 CST

By Mary Ellen Klas, The Miami Herald

Mar. 10--TALLAHASSEE -- State House and Senate leaders are backing a plan to ask voters statewide to stop the potential expansion of slot machines in Miami-Dade County next year.

With election year concerns hovering over him, Senate President Tom Lee asked a colleague to file a bill to put a constitutional amendment on the November ballot repealing the provision that allows Miami-Dade to hold a second referendum on putting slot machines in the county's horse track, dog track and jai alai fronton.

The chairman of the House Business Regulation Committee, Rep. Frank Attkisson, a Kissimmee Republican, is preparing a similar bill that is expected to be heard next week.

BROWARD SAID YES

Broward voters gave the OK to the controversial slot machines a year ago with the understanding that the tax money would go to help schools statewide. The county's four parimutuels are gearing up to start running them by July.

In a similar referendum, Miami-Dade voters rejected the idea of expanding gambling, but the state Constitution allows the county to conduct another vote in 2007, and every two years thereafter.

"The people have spoken and the Legislature needs to respect the citizens have said no once," Attkisson said. "I'm not sure they need to have people pounded on continually by the special interests."

But the proposal has broader political implications for Lee, a Brandon Republican who is running for the Republican nomination of state chief financial officer. His primary opponent is Rep. Randy Johnson of Celebration, the former head of the No Casinos campaign, which opposes the slot machines.

By promoting the bill in the Senate, whether it succeeds or not, Lee can inoculate himself against Johnson's claims that he's soft on gambling. Johnson has introduced a bill to repeal the constitutional provision that allows slot machines in Florida.

'VERY CAUTIOUS'

Sen. Lee Constantine, an Orlando Republican, said Lee asked him to file the bill in the event the proposal in the House moves forward.

"We in the Senate are being very cautious and want to see what the House might do," he said. "If the legislation starts getting traction in the House, the president wanted to match that."

Because the proposal is a constitutional amendment, it requires a two-thirds vote of each chamber to pass. Constantine conceded that may be too high a hurdle for the Senate, where repealing the slot machine provision "is not as high a priority as it is in the House."

Slots promoters scoffed at the proposals as another example of the Legislature taking power away from the people.

"Miami-Dade has voted not to implement slot machines in their county and for the state as a whole to take away their right to control their destiny is odd, peculiar and inefficient," said Jim Horne, head of the coalition of parimutuels that has worked to promote the slots measure in Miami-Dade and Broward.

-----

Copyright (c) 2006, The Miami Herald

Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.

For information on republishing this content, contact us at (800) 661-2511 (U.S.), (213) 237-4914 (worldwide), fax (213) 237-6515, or e-mail reprints@krtinfo.com.

Source: The Miami Herald

More News in this Category