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Friday, May 30, 2003

By Johnna A. Pro, Post-Gazette Staff Writer

Mike Jeannot raised his left hand, spreading his fingers wide for emphasis.

"Less than five years," he said, when asked to predict how soon The Meadows racetrack in Washington County will close if the state Legislature rejects a proposal to allow slot machines at horse racing tracks. "That's my business judgment based on what I see."

Jeannot and other operators of Pennsylvania tracks yesterday ramped up their effort to win support for a slots proposal pending in the Legislature, the subject of much jockeying by lawmakers.

A measure authored by state Sen. Robert M. Tomlinson, R-Bucks, and supported by Gov. Ed Rendell would allow up to 3,000 slot machines at each of the state's four existing tracks and four others not yet built.

Proponents say legalizing slots would save Pennsylvania's horse racing industry and its 35,000 jobs while pumping millions of dollars into state coffers. Pennsylvania residents spend $3 billion annually gambling out of state, according to recent studies.

But discussions about auctioning gaming licenses, Indian gaming, land-based casinos, riverboat gambling and proposals for keno in bars have diluted a focused discussion about slots at racetracks and left the horse racing industry vulnerable, said Jeannot, Kevin DeSanctis and Bob Green.

Jeannot is vice president of operations for Magna Entertainment, which operates The Meadows in North Strabane. DeSanctis is president of Penn National Gaming, which operates Penn National Race Course in Dauphin County and The Downs at Pocono in Luzerne County. Green is president of Philadelphia Park in Bucks County.

"What we need are the tools that the Legislature can provide so we can compete more effectively," Green said. "One of the things that has made it difficult is that people want to keep adding to what was a simple slots-at-the-racetrack bill for sites already zoned and licensed for gambling."

The Senate expected to vote on the slots measure May 13, but support wavered when members of the Democratic caucus, who will provide the bulk of the votes, objected to getting the legislation just hours beforehand.

Since then, gambling opponent Sen. Gibson C. Armstrong, R-Lancaster, has signaled that he will offer an amendment to Tomlinson's legislation that requires the state to auction off gaming licenses to the highest bidders, rather than giving them to track owners for a nominal fee as Tomlinson proposed.

That could open the licenses for bidding by some of the nation's biggest gaming companies, including those out of Atlantic City and Las Vegas, making it difficult for track operators to compete.

Opponents of gambling see Armstrong's plan as a way to muddy the debate and effectively kill the proposal altogether. Supporters believe an auction could generate millions of dollars for the state before a single slot machine is turned on.

"It actually seems to be getting a good deal of traction [on] both sides of the aisle," said Eric Arneson, chief of staff to Sen. David J. Brightbill, the Republican leader. "It is a fascinating twist to the discussion."

Track owners argue it's unrealistic to put a price on licenses without knowing their value and unfair to them because it ignores the investment they've already made in Pennsylvania.

"The concept of an auction would be devastating to those of us who have already invested millions into our Pennsylvania businesses," DeSanctis said. "It would be a shame if our opportunity to compete and our planned investment of hundreds of millions of dollars in Pennsylvania would be delayed or lost because of this risky bidding concept."

Johnna Pro can be reached at jpro@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1574.