Shamelessly stolen from Ohio Smokers Rights:
View All Topics | Create New Topic Messages
1. Strickland allows slots at race tracks
Posted by: "bsr71555"
Fri Jul 10, 2009 4:46 pm (PDT)
Gambling was turned down several times in Ohio. If Strickland can go against the will of the voters to allow slots then he should go against 'the will of the voters'(majority of the 35% or so who bothered to vote) to allow smoking. I know I will still go out of state to gamble.
http://tinyurl. com/mbzqdn
Governor, legislators agree on budget terms
Friday, July 10, 2009 4:08 PM
By Mark Niquette, Jim Siegel and Cathy Candisky
Ten days late, Gov. Ted Strickland and legislative leaders today agreed to a compromise budget to break a stalemate in part by adding electronic slot machines at Ohio's seven horse racetracks.
The budget deal was announced about 3:30 p.m. after Strickland, House Speaker Armond Budish, D-Beachwood, and Senate President Bill M. Harris, R.-Ashland met this afternoon to finalize details.
"We have reached a final agreement today on a budget that is not only balanced, but invests in education without raising taxes on Ohioans," Gov. Ted Strickland said.
Under the agreement, Strickland will issue an executive order on Monday instructing the Ohio Lottery Commission to begin implementing the electronic slots, or video lottery terminals at Ohio's seven race tracks.
This will be followed by legislative language in the state budget that will acknowledge the lottery's authority to implement the slots and other implementation requirements, officials said.
Strickland had proposed the slots to generate $933 million as a way to help fill a $3.2 billion shortfall, along with $2.3 billion in spending cuts.
Senate Republicans had pushed to place the slots issue on the ballot, or in lieu of that strategy, argued that Strickland could implement a slots plan without legislative approval. Strickland has argued that placing the issue on the ballot would not help fill the shortfall in the two-year budget, and that he needed some legislative language both for legal reasons and to provide incentive for track owners to fork over $65 million for license fees.
"This is what President Harris had asked the governor to do two or three weeks ago," said Sen. Mark Wagoner, R-Toledo, a member of the budget conference committee. "I'm glad that the parties were able to continue to talk. My preference would be to put this on the ballot to let the voters of Ohio decide, but I also recognize this is an ongoing negotiation, and in negotiations, you don't always get what you want."
Harris added: "As I have said many times in the past few weeks, I believe he has the authority to do that and that I would be willing to pass legislation to implement it. As such, I have agreed to include language in the conference committee report that will acknowledge his authority to expand the Lottery."
The conference committee is scheduled to meet Monday at 11 a.m.
House Speaker Armond Budish, D-Beachwood, also expressed his pleasure with the agreement.
"We were able to provide a balanced budget that reduces spending, shrinks the size of government, protects vital services for our most vulnerable citizens, and prioritizes job creation to help move Ohio forward," he said.
In addition to expanding gambling, the governor and legislative leaders have agreed to move state aid back into the depleted mental-health budget and restore some funding to libraries.
State aid also will be restored in large part to home, community and assisted-living care for Medicaid patients. Increased funding to nursing homes proposed by legislators also will be scaled back |
|
|
Darkseid
Smoking Lobby Sponsor
Joined: Jun 13, 2006
Posts: 1513
Location: Peoples Republik of oHEILo
|
