Dear H.E. Most Reverend Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano (202)-333-7121);http://apostolicnunciatureunitedstates.webstarts.com/) :
I am an employee of Nassau OTB, a New York public benefit corporation, that closes on Roman Catholic Easter Sunday and Palm Sunday in preference to the same holy days observed by members of the Eastern Orthodox Church on different Sundays. NY Const Art 1, Sec 3 precludes the State of New York from such religious preference. I am not a Christian and believe that people should be able to freely choose their days of work, prayer and/or betting on horses at Nassau OTB, a public benefit corporation. The New York State Lottery is open every day of the year and the slot machines in NY are open every day of the year. I would like to be able to work on days that others may observe as days of prayer. I acknowledge that the US is a Christian nation and the only religious holiday on the US federal calendar is Christmas.
Would the Church express its opinion on this matter to its member Governor Andrew Cuomo who is my Governor and charged with seeing that the laws of the State of NY are "faithfully" executed?
My contact information is set forth below along with a background article. More background material is available upon request.
Sincerely yours,
Nassau OTB Cashier
> LI Confidential > Stop scratching on holidays
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.
HI-
Thanks for the help. The item’s below. I’d be happy to mail you a copy, if you give me a mailing address.
Claude Solnik
(631) 913-4244
Long Island Business News
2150 Smithtown Ave.
Ronkonkoma, NY 11779-7348
NYS Attorney General Eric T.
Schneiderman, seen here on May 27, 2014. Photo
Credit: Getty Images / Andrew Burton
ALBANY
-- Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman Monday proposed banning
outside employment by state legislators, ending their per diem expense
checks and lowering the limits on campaign contribution by special
interests trying to influence Albany in what he called "a golden age of
graft."
"Allowing legislators to have outside jobs invites corruption," Schneiderman said, according to prepared remarks to the Citizens Union good-government group.
Schneiderman's ethics proposal also would change the term served by legislators from two years to four years with the goal of reducing constant fundraising for campaigns.
He also proposes a "significant" pay increase to attract better candidates and reduce the influence of big donors on politics -- from the current base pay of $79,500 for the part-time job to somewhere between a New York City Council member's wage of $112,500 and the pay for a member of Congress, $174,000. He also would change the $172-per-day allotment to reimbursing for actual expenses.
While Schneiderman was making his speech last night in Manhattan at New York Law School, at least 10 fundraisers were scheduled in Albany to begin when the State Senate and Assembly adjourned for the day. Tickets ranged from $250 to $1,000.
Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo is trying to force greater disclosure of outside income on lawmakers as well as limits on per diem expenses. Cuomo put his latest ethics package into his budget amendments, but the Senate and Assembly so far have refused to introduce them. Lawmakers said, however, that they will negotiate reforms.
"Outside employment income must be banned . . . it is impossible to avoid conflicts -- or the appearance of conflicts -- if legislators have outside employment," Schneiderman said. "The time has come to end it."
Schneiderman urged Cuomo to force the legislature to accept the changes under his extraordinary budget powers, even if that means the budget is late. The state budget is due by April 1, after which the governor can impose many of his policies in emergency spending measures, while providing the legislature with the option of either approving them or shutting down government.
"Prosecutors can only respond to the symptoms of a system that is very, very ill," Schneiderman said. He said most reforms so far only tinkered at the margins, followed by news conferences declaring "groundbreaking" change, and "ultimately followed by another scandal."
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"Allowing legislators to have outside jobs invites corruption," Schneiderman said, according to prepared remarks to the Citizens Union good-government group.
Schneiderman's ethics proposal also would change the term served by legislators from two years to four years with the goal of reducing constant fundraising for campaigns.
He also proposes a "significant" pay increase to attract better candidates and reduce the influence of big donors on politics -- from the current base pay of $79,500 for the part-time job to somewhere between a New York City Council member's wage of $112,500 and the pay for a member of Congress, $174,000. He also would change the $172-per-day allotment to reimbursing for actual expenses.
While Schneiderman was making his speech last night in Manhattan at New York Law School, at least 10 fundraisers were scheduled in Albany to begin when the State Senate and Assembly adjourned for the day. Tickets ranged from $250 to $1,000.
Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo is trying to force greater disclosure of outside income on lawmakers as well as limits on per diem expenses. Cuomo put his latest ethics package into his budget amendments, but the Senate and Assembly so far have refused to introduce them. Lawmakers said, however, that they will negotiate reforms.
"Outside employment income must be banned . . . it is impossible to avoid conflicts -- or the appearance of conflicts -- if legislators have outside employment," Schneiderman said. "The time has come to end it."
Schneiderman urged Cuomo to force the legislature to accept the changes under his extraordinary budget powers, even if that means the budget is late. The state budget is due by April 1, after which the governor can impose many of his policies in emergency spending measures, while providing the legislature with the option of either approving them or shutting down government.
"Prosecutors can only respond to the symptoms of a system that is very, very ill," Schneiderman said. He said most reforms so far only tinkered at the margins, followed by news conferences declaring "groundbreaking" change, and "ultimately followed by another scandal."
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