(Casinos--or the lack of them--were making news internationally as well. Click here.
ST. PAUL-A state senate committee has turned down two bills proposing new metro-area casinos. One bill, Canterbury Park's proposal to develop a "racino" by adding new casino gaming options to its existing racetrack and card club in Shakopee, MN, failed to pass the Minnesota Senate committee on Agriculture, Gaming and Veterans Affairs by a 10-4 vote.
The other casino bill, a state-tribal partnership that Gov. Tim Pawlenty advocated, was defeated by the same vote in the same committee. "We are not surprised by the actions of the Senate committee, and fully expect the gaming debate to continue in the both the Minnesota Senate and House this year," says Randy Sampson, Canterbury Park's president.
A merger between the two casino plans could be the next step, according to political insiders. Both sides say they were open to such a merger.
Under both casino plans, the Minnesota Lottery would own or lease the slot machines and have a hand in running the gaming operation. Pawlenty's proposal calls for three or more Indian tribes to pay a $200 million state licensing fee for an off-reservation casino in the metro area or an adjoining county that would earn an estimated $143 million a year for the state. The Canterbury plan calls for a $100 million state fee, plus annual state earnings of about $103 million.
Sampson says that his organization and its supporters will continue to make a case with legislators for how the "racino" can create jobs, grow Minnesota's horse industry and generate new tax revenues for the state. The racino at Canterbury Park proposal would add several new forms of entertainment, including 3,000 slot machines, 40 blackjack tables, an Olympic-scale equestrian center, and a major hotel and conference center.
The two casino bills are still progressing in the Minnesota House, and if they were passed there, they would still be alive for a joint committee between to the two legislative branches at the end of the session. Mike Hatch, Minnesota's attorney general, recently said Pawlenty's casino proposal was unconstitutional.
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