Casino-Free Philadelphia Boycotts Farce of Casino Oversight Hearings

For Immediate Release

Casino-Free Philadelphia did not participate in today's Gaming Control Board farcical hearing in protest of ongoing corruption scandals and the collusion of the Board with the industry it is supposed to regulate. To date, the PGCB has not put in place any meaningful protections for Philadelphia and its citizens from predatory gambling.

At hearing after hearing the Board uncritically accepts pre-packaged presentations from casino operators and does their bidding while completely ignoring legitimate citizen concerns.

Rather than accept whatever the casino investors say, the Gaming Control Board should revoke Sugarhouse casino's license because the casino does not have the financing to build even their scaled down slots parlor on Philadelphia's Delaware Riverfront.

The law would have prohibited SugarHouse from receiving a license in 2006 and the same law prohibits any license extension; but this Board does not care about the law. Casino-Free Philadelphia decided to not testify at today's hearing as the Board and its proceedings are not legitimate, whether they take place in Harrisburg or our great city. Casino-Free Philadelphia representatives are available for comment.

Casino-Free Philadelphia will continue to inform and engage concerned citizens in effective approaches to challenge predatory gambling’s attempt to invade Philadelphia. We encourage the public and the media to attend our upcoming events: the next Town Hall in West Philly on May 21st and Beat the House on June 6th at a slots parlor near Philadelphia.

Today's Gaming Control Board hearing continues the long history of corruption in the fledgling PA casino industry. It has been more than three years since the Board held any hearings in Philadelphia. Since then, there has been a shameful parade of corruption, including:

• The former Board Chair, Tad Decker, left the Board to become CEO of the law firm representing the proposed Sugarhouse casino.
• The Board sued to remove a voter-initiated referendum which would have allowed Philadelphians some say on the location of the proposed casinos.
• Neil Bluhm, chairman of SugarHouse received a second casino license despite the prohibition in the Gaming Act.
• The Board has licensed two convicted felons including the Chairman of Foxwoods, a convicted drug dealer, who is behind the proposed Market Street casino.
• Philadelphia casino investors made numerous illegal contributions to politicians despite the prohibition in the Gaming Act.
• The architect of the Gaming Act, former Senator Vincent Fumo, convicted of corruption in federal court, currently awaits sentencing hearings to determine his fate.

Casino-Free Philadelphia's mission is to stop casinos from coming to Philadelphia and close any that open. The benefits of casinos can never outweigh the social and economic costs from an industry reliant on addiction to survive. Visit us online at www.CasinoFreePhila.org.

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