Lawyers, assault rifles that you load with cash.
Robert Williams, the current director of the New York Lottery who
is a former legal counsel for the New York State Racing and Wagering
Board, has been appointed as acting director of a new agency combining
regulation of all forms of gambling in New York, a racing official with
knowledge of the appointment confirmed on Tuesday.
Williams was appointed to the post by Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who holds the power to appoint five of the seven commissioners on the New York State Gaming Commission. The commission is scheduled to become active on Feb. 1, with the power to regulate all forms of gambling in New York, including horse racing and casinos.
The appointment was first reported by the Blood-Horse website.
In addition to his position with the state lottery, Williams is currently the head of the New York State Racing Franchise Oversight Board, which holds broad authority to review the operations of the New York Racing Association. From 2005-07, Williams was the executive director of the New York State Committee on the Future of Racing, a job that required Williams to evaluate proposals to take over NYRA’s franchise to operate New York’s three most prominent tracks. NYRA retained the franchise after filing for bankruptcy and handing its deeds over to the state.
The operations of the existing New York State Racing and Wagering Board will be folded into the New York State Gaming Commission. The previous chairman of the racing and wagering board, John Sabini, resigned earlier this year.
I hereby petition the New York State Racing and Wagering Board to obtain a Formal Opinion from New York State Attorney General Eric Schneider man answering the following questions:
1. Is NY ML Sec. 109 (previously Sec 105) constitutionally defensible?
2. Is NY ML Sec 109 violative of the rights of New York State bettors secured by NY Cost. Art. 1, Sec. 3?
3. Is NY ML Sec. 109 vague, indefinite and/or overly broad as the terms "Easter Sunday" and "Palm Sunday" do not define one and only one Sunday in all years. See the Gregorian and Julian Calendars.
4. Does NY ML Sec. 109 apply to my employer Nassau OTB taking bets on races run without the State of New York?
I am simultaneously asking Barbara Jones Esq.(http://www.zuckerman.com/attorneys.html) to represent pro bono myself and/or Refaqat Malik, the owner of the 99 cent Express down the block from the Franklin Square Branch of Nassau OTB, and/or any other New York State bettor and/or Elias Tskerides et al.
The State of New York can ill afford to not avail itself of the FREE FORMAL OPINION of the New York Attorney General on a simple matter that should have been resolved NYC OTB, a public benefit corporation, in 2003.
Sincerely yours,
January 28, 2013
Stop scratching on holidays
Off Track Betting in New York State has been racing into a crisis called shrinking revenue. Some people have spitballed a solution: Don’t close on holidays.
New York State Racing Law bars racing on Christmas, Easter and Palm Sunday, and the state has ruled OTBs can’t handle action on those days, even though they could easily broadcast races from out of state.
“You should be able to bet whenever you want,” said Jackson Leeds, a Nassau OTB employee who makes an occasional bet. He added some irrefutable logic: “How is the business going to make money if you’re not open to take people’s bets?”
Elias Tsekerides, president of the Federation of Hellenic Societies of Greater New York, said OTB is open on Greek Orthodox Easter and Palm Sunday.
“I don’t want discrimination,” Tsekerides said. “They close for the Catholics, but open for the Greek Orthodox? It’s either open for all or not open.”
OTB officials have said they lose millions by closing on Palm Sunday alone, with tracks such as Gulfstream, Santa Anita, Turf Paradise and Hawthorne running.
One option: OTBs could just stay open and face the consequences. New York City OTB did just that back in 2003. The handle was about $1.5 million – and OTB was fined $5,000.
Easy money.
By PAUL POST, The Saratogian
Williams was appointed to the post by Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who holds the power to appoint five of the seven commissioners on the New York State Gaming Commission. The commission is scheduled to become active on Feb. 1, with the power to regulate all forms of gambling in New York, including horse racing and casinos.
The appointment was first reported by the Blood-Horse website.
In addition to his position with the state lottery, Williams is currently the head of the New York State Racing Franchise Oversight Board, which holds broad authority to review the operations of the New York Racing Association. From 2005-07, Williams was the executive director of the New York State Committee on the Future of Racing, a job that required Williams to evaluate proposals to take over NYRA’s franchise to operate New York’s three most prominent tracks. NYRA retained the franchise after filing for bankruptcy and handing its deeds over to the state.
The operations of the existing New York State Racing and Wagering Board will be folded into the New York State Gaming Commission. The previous chairman of the racing and wagering board, John Sabini, resigned earlier this year.
I hereby petition the New York State Racing and Wagering Board to obtain a Formal Opinion from New York State Attorney General Eric Schneider man answering the following questions:
1. Is NY ML Sec. 109 (previously Sec 105) constitutionally defensible?
2. Is NY ML Sec 109 violative of the rights of New York State bettors secured by NY Cost. Art. 1, Sec. 3?
3. Is NY ML Sec. 109 vague, indefinite and/or overly broad as the terms "Easter Sunday" and "Palm Sunday" do not define one and only one Sunday in all years. See the Gregorian and Julian Calendars.
4. Does NY ML Sec. 109 apply to my employer Nassau OTB taking bets on races run without the State of New York?
I am simultaneously asking Barbara Jones Esq.(http://www.zuckerman.com/attorneys.html) to represent pro bono myself and/or Refaqat Malik, the owner of the 99 cent Express down the block from the Franklin Square Branch of Nassau OTB, and/or any other New York State bettor and/or Elias Tskerides et al.
The State of New York can ill afford to not avail itself of the FREE FORMAL OPINION of the New York Attorney General on a simple matter that should have been resolved NYC OTB, a public benefit corporation, in 2003.
Sincerely yours,
January 28, 2013
Stop scratching on holidays
Published: June 1, 2012
Off Track Betting in New York State has been racing into a crisis called shrinking revenue. Some people have spitballed a solution: Don’t close on holidays.
New York State Racing Law bars racing on Christmas, Easter and Palm Sunday, and the state has ruled OTBs can’t handle action on those days, even though they could easily broadcast races from out of state.
“You should be able to bet whenever you want,” said Jackson Leeds, a Nassau OTB employee who makes an occasional bet. He added some irrefutable logic: “How is the business going to make money if you’re not open to take people’s bets?”
Elias Tsekerides, president of the Federation of Hellenic Societies of Greater New York, said OTB is open on Greek Orthodox Easter and Palm Sunday.
“I don’t want discrimination,” Tsekerides said. “They close for the Catholics, but open for the Greek Orthodox? It’s either open for all or not open.”
OTB officials have said they lose millions by closing on Palm Sunday alone, with tracks such as Gulfstream, Santa Anita, Turf Paradise and Hawthorne running.
One option: OTBs could just stay open and face the consequences. New York City OTB did just that back in 2003. The handle was about $1.5 million – and OTB was fined $5,000.
Easy money.
Legislation would strengthen state OTB corporations - Franklin Square
www.liherald.com/franklinsquare/franklinsquare/.../Legislation-woul...
Franklin Square's community newspaper, your
source for local news, breaking news, school district updates ...
Jackie Nash/Herald ... Ed Ra's legislation to allow
off-track betting on Palm Sunday is consistent with the
United States Constitution.OTB FACES HAND SLAP OVER PALM - NY Daily News
www.nydailynews.com/.../otb-faces-hand-slap-palm-article-1.667233
Apr 16, 2003 – By Jerry Bossert
/ NEW YORK DAILY NEWS ... Aqueduct was also closed on Palm
Sunday, but OTB thrived on action from around the country.OPEN ON 1ST PALM SUNDAY, OTB RAKES IN $2M - NY Daily News
www.nydailynews.com/.../open-1st-palm-sunday-otb-rakes-2m-articl...
Apr 14, 2003 – New York City Off-Track
Betting made history yesterday, taking bets on Palm
Sunday. Since 1973, when Sunday racing was made legal in New ...Crist: New York restrictions defy belief | Daily Racing Form
Nov 25, 2011 – It's only 126 days until Palm Sunday and seven more until Easter, ... Exclusive content available only with a DRF Plus Plan. ... By Steven Crist ...
News
Off Track Betting to push for Palm Sunday opening
Friday, January 23, 2009By PAUL POST, The Saratogian
SARATOGA SPRINGS — Off Track Betting officials say the plan to push
for legislation that would allow them to stay open on Palm Sunday.
State Racing Law prohibits live racing on Christmas, Easter and Palm Sunday. By extension, the state Racing and Wagering Board has ruled that OTBs may not conduct business, either.
But OTB leaders say they’re losing several million dollars worth of wagering, a portion of which goes back to the cash-strapped state and county governments.
"It’s going to be part of our legislative agenda this year," Capital Region OTB President John Signor said. "In my view it’s a no-brainer. It’s very competitive out there. By not allowing it you’re driving bettors to out-of-state wagering sites."
Non-New York thoroughbred tracks such as Gulfstream, Santa Anita, Turf Paradise and Hawthorne conduct Palm Sunday racing along with The Meadowlands in New Jersey where harness racing is held. New York bettors should be allowed to wager on those races at OTBs or at New York racetrack simulcast venues, Signor said.
In 2003, New York City Off Track Betting challenged the law and stayed open on Palm Sunday, generating about $1.5 million in handle. However, the Racing and Wagering Board said the entity didn’t obtain approval to alter its plan of operation and imposed a $5,000 fine.
The next year, New York City OTB formally asked for approval to change its plan of operation and was denied.
"We have not tested it since then," President Raymond Casey said. "If you have a specific directive from a regulator you need to obey that."
But with the state facing a projected $15 billion budget deficit, others say it’s time to revisit the matter. "I’ve been an advocate for more than 30 years to have betting on Palm Sunday," Catskill Regional OTB President Donald Groth said. "It would be one small step to increase business."
The Racing and Wagering Board’s makeup has undergone major changes since 2003 including a new chairman, John Sabini, who took office last August. Spokesman Joseph Mahoney said that no one has brought the matter before the board this year.
"There’s been no recent legal analysis about this," he said. "We’re not bound by previous decisions. If the issue was raised, we would conduct a review and decide based upon the relevant information."
The Palm Sunday debate is one more example of the way state leaders are turning to gambling as a way to solve New York’s fiscal woes. In December, Gov. David Paterson proposed putting video lottery terminals at Belmont Park in addition to Aqueduct, where Buffalo-based Delaware North Companies is scheduled to operate a 4,500-machine racino.
In addition to VLTs, the Lottery Division has talked with the governor about expanding gaming to include electronic table games such as poker, blackjack and 21 that are very similar to traditional forms of casino gambling.
Several years ago, Senator Bill Larkin, R-New Windsor, introduced legislation (S-1199) that would have overturned the Palm Sunday provision. However, it got bottled up and died in committee in 2005.
"It kept getting more and more opposition from people who don’t like gambling," spokesman Steve Casscles said.
The current financial crisis could change that, however.
Jackson Leeds is a part-time cashier for Nassau Regional Off Track Betting on Long Island. As a taxpayer advocate, he says it’s incumbent on the state to allow OTBs to stay open on Palm Sunday.
"Nobody has any money," he said. "The state should be glad to allow it. It’s the universal common denominator —cash."
State Racing Law prohibits live racing on Christmas, Easter and Palm Sunday. By extension, the state Racing and Wagering Board has ruled that OTBs may not conduct business, either.
But OTB leaders say they’re losing several million dollars worth of wagering, a portion of which goes back to the cash-strapped state and county governments.
"It’s going to be part of our legislative agenda this year," Capital Region OTB President John Signor said. "In my view it’s a no-brainer. It’s very competitive out there. By not allowing it you’re driving bettors to out-of-state wagering sites."
Non-New York thoroughbred tracks such as Gulfstream, Santa Anita, Turf Paradise and Hawthorne conduct Palm Sunday racing along with The Meadowlands in New Jersey where harness racing is held. New York bettors should be allowed to wager on those races at OTBs or at New York racetrack simulcast venues, Signor said.
In 2003, New York City Off Track Betting challenged the law and stayed open on Palm Sunday, generating about $1.5 million in handle. However, the Racing and Wagering Board said the entity didn’t obtain approval to alter its plan of operation and imposed a $5,000 fine.
The next year, New York City OTB formally asked for approval to change its plan of operation and was denied.
"We have not tested it since then," President Raymond Casey said. "If you have a specific directive from a regulator you need to obey that."
But with the state facing a projected $15 billion budget deficit, others say it’s time to revisit the matter. "I’ve been an advocate for more than 30 years to have betting on Palm Sunday," Catskill Regional OTB President Donald Groth said. "It would be one small step to increase business."
The Racing and Wagering Board’s makeup has undergone major changes since 2003 including a new chairman, John Sabini, who took office last August. Spokesman Joseph Mahoney said that no one has brought the matter before the board this year.
"There’s been no recent legal analysis about this," he said. "We’re not bound by previous decisions. If the issue was raised, we would conduct a review and decide based upon the relevant information."
The Palm Sunday debate is one more example of the way state leaders are turning to gambling as a way to solve New York’s fiscal woes. In December, Gov. David Paterson proposed putting video lottery terminals at Belmont Park in addition to Aqueduct, where Buffalo-based Delaware North Companies is scheduled to operate a 4,500-machine racino.
In addition to VLTs, the Lottery Division has talked with the governor about expanding gaming to include electronic table games such as poker, blackjack and 21 that are very similar to traditional forms of casino gambling.
Several years ago, Senator Bill Larkin, R-New Windsor, introduced legislation (S-1199) that would have overturned the Palm Sunday provision. However, it got bottled up and died in committee in 2005.
"It kept getting more and more opposition from people who don’t like gambling," spokesman Steve Casscles said.
The current financial crisis could change that, however.
Jackson Leeds is a part-time cashier for Nassau Regional Off Track Betting on Long Island. As a taxpayer advocate, he says it’s incumbent on the state to allow OTBs to stay open on Palm Sunday.
"Nobody has any money," he said. "The state should be glad to allow it. It’s the universal common denominator —cash."
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