Close casino vote a wake up call for all
The Las Vegas casino pushers very nearly got their way Wednesday, when a Senate bill creating two casinos with 5,000 slot machines and 240 table games failed by a single vote in the House.
Had the House passed this bill, Gov. Maggie Hassan would have signed it and that would have been it. New Hampshire would have gone from a fiscally conservative, small-government state to a government addicted to casino dollars.
Officials who constantly crave casino dollars act like drug addicts. They think a quick infusion of casino cash will solve all our problems. Instead of continuing to work hard each day to maximize sustainable revenue and control expenses, they go for the quick fix: the illusion that if we just inject these casino dollars into the system, everything will be OK. And what these casino junkies have found in other states, and what we'll learn pretty soon here in New Hampshire if we're not careful, is that the fix doesn't last.
Gambling tax revenues will fall short of what was promised and casino operators will say the only way they can continue to give the government what it craves is to have more slot machines, more table games. The influence of these casino operators will grow as the importance of casino operators' dollars grow to our state's operations.
The fact that this bill came just one vote shy of passage after the House's influential Ways and Means Committee voted 11-9 against it, tells us the casino lobbyists are working overtime, promising revenue sharing and quick solutions to a revenue gap created by the courts ruling a hospital tax unconstitutional.
Thank goodness for Deputy Speaker Naida Kaen, a Lee Democrat who was filling in for absent Speaker Terie Norelli, who cast the tie-breaking vote against casinos. Citizens of New Hampshire owe her a true debt of gratitude. Lawmakers voted against the bill, 173-172.
We're dismayed that more than 50 House members didn't even bother to vote on this incredibly important bill. When the bill comes back up for reconsideration on May 7, we urge all anti-casino legislators to show up and vote to kill it.
New Hampshire weathered the Great Recession, and its economy is outpacing other states in New England and the nation.
The Associated Press reported that House Finance Committee Chairwoman Mary Jane Wallner, in referencing the Medicaid Enhancement Tax, "said the governor, legislative leaders and hospitals are negotiating a solution that addresses the court's concerns with the tax."
"This is not the time to push the panic button," Wallner said. "This is the time to solve the (tax issue) with a thoughtful, measured approach."
We agree completely.
Once we let casinos in, that's it. There's no turning back. You can't unring that bell.
We hope Wednesday's vote was a wake-up call to all those who oppose large, Las Vegas-style casinos in New Hampshire and, between now and reconsideration of the bill on May 7, they use every resource available to fight this looming threat. Frankly, casino foes got lucky. We won't get lucky again.
Those who have objectively studied the impact of casinos in New Hampshire have concluded they will hurt our quality of life. Former Gov. John Lynch came to that conclusion, as did the head of his casino study committee, Andrew Lietz. In case you missed it, here's what Lietz concluded:
"First, and most importantly, (a casino) is not the state budget fix that many people think it is. Across the country, gambling dollars have become what some refer to as 'legislative cocaine.' Once you have a little bit of it, you want more. The state will not be able to control casino or slot machine gaming the way it thinks it will.
"These gambling dollars will fund new or expanded state programs and, in any economic downturn, the state will turn to gambling tax revenue to try to balance the budget. When existing gambling revenue isn't enough, we'll have to add more games and more locations to keep state programs going.
This will become a perpetual problem that only builds on itself. Every state that has opened the door to gaming has experienced this cycle ..."
To those who voted for casinos, we urge you to reconsider.
To those who oppose casinos, please do what you need to do to clear your schedule so you can be in Concord on May 7 to vote against big casinos and protect what makes New Hampshire a model of small, effective government and the envy of states across the nation.
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