Pennsylvania: Panel tackles casino grand jury report

Panel tackles casino grand jury report
BY ROBERT SWIFT (HARRISBURG BUREAU CHIEF)


HARRISBURG - A House panel will start deliberations this week on a package of prospective bills to implement recommendations made to overhaul the state Gaming Control Board by a state grand jury last spring.

The Gaming Oversight Committee has scheduled a hearing Wednesday on a "Gaming Board Rehabilitation Package," a collection of proposals ranging from strengthening public corruption laws to putting new restrictions on who can be appointed to the gaming board. A co-sponsorship memo outlines 14 measures that have yet to be formally introduced.

Committee members have been drafting these bills since a grand jury based in Allegheny County issued a report that puts state casino licensing practices in a harsh light.

In the 102-page report, the grand jury concluded the gaming board was fixated during 2005-06 on making the licensing process fair to casino applicants at the public's expense. The report contained no charges of wrongdoing against any individuals associated with the licensing process that began shortly after Pennsylvania legalized slot casinos in 2004.

In one key finding, the grand jury determined that the gaming board treated Mount Airy Casino Resort in Paradise Twp. differently from other applicants and that two officials ordered key changes in information for a suitability report about Mount Airy founder Louis DeNaples' alleged ties to William D'Elia, a reputed head of the organized crime family founded by the late Russell Bufalino. Mr. DeNaples consistently denied any ties to Mr. D'Elia during the course of a now-dismissed perjury case against him in Dauphin County.

Panel Chairman Curt Schroder, R-155, Exton, is addressing a grand jury conclusion that existing state laws are inadequate to combat public corruption. He plans to introduce a new chapter in the state crimes code focusing on anti-fraud and corruption measures.

Rep. Karen Boback, R-117, Harveys Lake, a panel member, is drafting a bill to require fuller disclosure of closed-door executive sessions by the gaming board.

Another planned measure would prohibit gaming board members from meeting in executive session to deliberate slot machine license applications, except in very limited situations where confidential information is being considered.

A pending bill addresses the duties of the gaming board's Bureau of Investigations and Enforcement in handling information about a license applicant. The House voted last winter to transfer BIE to the state attorney general's office.