For Immediate Release: February 6, 2014
Contact:
Lee.Park@gaming.ny.gov
NEW YORK STATE GAMING COMMISSION NAMES GAMING FACILITY LOCATION BOARD MEMBERS
Business
expert and policy advisor Paul Francis, Hofstra University President
Stuart Rabinowitz and Former New York City Comptroller Bill Thompson
join panel responsible for selecting casino locations and operators in
Upstate New York
The
New York State Gaming Commission today announced that it will appoint
the first three individuals to serve on the Resort Gaming Facility
Location Board, the body that will be responsible
for evaluating casino applications and making selections of who is
eligible to apply for a commercial gaming license in New York State.
The
three recommendations, Paul Francis, Stuart Rabinowitz and Bill
Thompson, will be formally appointed at the Commission’s next meeting.
Pursuant to the Upstate New York Gaming and Economic
Development Act (Chapters 174 and 175 of the Laws of 2013), the
Commission is responsible for appointing five members to the Resort
Gaming Facility Location Board.
“These
individuals have the expertise, objectivity and knowledge of New York
State to evaluate the applications to operate destination resort
casinos,” said Chairman-Designate Mark Gearan.
“I thank them for their commitment to bringing much-needed economic
development, revenue and jobs to Upstate New York.”
The members of the Gaming Facility Location Board will be:
Paul Francis, Business Executive, Founder and Managing Partner of Cedar Street Group, LLC:
Paul Francis is a business executive with
more than 25 years of private sector experience and has served as a
senior policy advisor and appointee under three consecutive New York
State governors. He currently serves as a Distinguished Senior Fellow of
the Guarini Center on Environmental and Land Use
Law at NYU Law School. Mr. Francis came to public service in 2007 as
Budget Director for Gov. Eliot Spitzer after serving for two years as a
policy adviser to the Spitzer campaign. In 2008, Spitzer made him
Director of State Operations, overseeing all state
agencies. He kept that post under Gov. David Paterson until stepping
down at the conclusion of the 2008 session for the role of Chief
Operating Officer for Bloomberg L.P.’s Financial Products Division. In
December 2010, Governor Andrew Cuomo named Mr. Francis
the State Director of Agency Redesign and Efficiency, a new post, and
installed him as Chairman of the Spending and Government Efficiency
Commission (SAGE). Mr. Francis retired from state employment in 2013.
Mr. Francis’ private jobs have included chief financial
officer at Ann Taylor and Priceline.com. Francis is the founder of
venture capital firm Cedar Street Group and also served as managing
director at Merrill Lynch. He graduated from Yale College and New York
University School of Law in 1980 and worked for Skadden
Arps Slate Meagher & Flom. He resides in Westchester County.
“Mr.
Francis’ distinguished experience in both the private and public sector
is a commodity that is vital to the siting process,” said
Chairman-Designate Gearan.
Stuart Rabinowitz, President, Hofstra University:
Stuart Rabinowitz is the eighth president of Hofstra University,
selected by the
Board of Trustees in December 2000. Prior to his appointment, he served
as dean of the Hofstra University School of Law from September 1989
through June 2001. He joined the faculty of the Law School in 1972.
President Rabinowitz has held positions with a number
of government and community organizations, including the Judicial
Advisory Council of the State of New York Unified Court System, County
of Nassau. He currently serves as a member of the board of directors for
the Long Island Association and as co-vice chair
of the Long Island Regional Economic Development Council. He has also
served as a trustee of the Commission on Independent Colleges and
Universities and on the board of directors of the Long Island Technology
Network. He is a former member of the Nassau County
Blue Ribbon Financial Review Panel, former chair of the Nassau County
Local Advisory Board and a member of the Nassau County Commission on
Government Revision, which was charged with drafting a new charter and a
new form of government for the County. President
Rabinowitz received a juris doctor, magna cum laude, from Columbia
University School of Law, where he was a member of the board of editors
of the Columbia Law Review and a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar. He
graduated from the City College of New York with honors,
and is a member of Phi Beta Kappa and the American Law Institute.
“President
Rabinowitz has long been a strong advocate for community interests in
proposed casino siting plans, and he brings a valuable perspective to
the Board,” said Chairman-Designate Gearan.
William
C. Thompson, Jr., Chief Administrative Officer and Senior Managing
Director at Siebert Brandford Shank & Company L.L.C.:
Mr.
Thompson served as the Comptroller for the City of New York from
January 2002 to December 2009, where he was custodian and investment
advisor to the $100 billion-plus New York City Pension Funds. In this
role, Mr. Thompson invested hundreds of millions of
dollars in affordable housing and commercial real estate in New York
City. During his tenure, Mr. Thompson also worked with leaders of the
financial services industry to reform the operations of the New York
Stock Exchange and spearheaded the City’s innovative
Banking Development District program. Mr. Thompson also served as a
Senior Vice President in Public Finance in the mid-1990s. He joined
Siebert Brandford Shank & Company, L.L.C., the largest minority- and
women-owned municipal bond underwriter in the country
in 2010. Prior to his work as Comptroller, he had served as Brooklyn
Deputy Borough President and as a Member and five-term President of the
New York City Board of Education. Mr. Thompson is from the
Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn, attended Midwood
High School in Brooklyn and graduated from Tufts University in 1974. He
resides in Harlem.
“Mr.
Thompson brings to the Board a lifetime of demonstrated leadership and
financial management experience that is essential,” said
Chairman-Designate Gearan.
The
Facility Location Board’s primary duty is to select not more than four
gaming facility license applicants through a competitive process to be
located in the Catskills/Hudson Valley Region,
the Eastern Southern Tier and the Capital Region. In particular, the
Facility Location Board will:
·
Work with the Commission to develop the application form
·
Determine a gaming facility license fee
·
Develop the criteria to assess which applications provide the highest and best value to the state, zone and region
·
Determine
the sources and total amount of an applicant's proposed capitalization
to develop, construct, maintain and operate a proposed gaming facility
·
Issue detailed findings of facts and conclusions demonstrating the reasons supporting its decisions to select applicants
As
mandated in the Act, Board members must possess ten or more years of
responsible experience in fiscal matters, plus significant service:
·
As an accountant economist, or financial analyst experienced in finance or economics
·
In an academic field relating to finance or economics
·
In the field of commercial real estate
·
As an executive with fiduciary responsibilities in charge of a large organization or foundation
Board Members must be residents of New York and cannot be elected officials. Additionally, they cannot:
·
Have a close familial or business relationship to a person that holds a license under the Racing Law
·
Have
any direct or indirect financial interest, ownership, or management,
including holding any stocks, bonds, or other similar financial
interests in any gaming activities, including
horse racing, lottery or gambling
·
Receive
or share in, directly or indirectly, the receipts or proceeds of any
gaming activities, including horse racing, lottery or gambling
·
Have
a beneficial interest in any contract for the manufacture or sale of
gaming devices, the conduct of any gaming activity, or the provision of
any independent consulting services
in connection with any licensed establishment
In
addition, the Gaming Commission has determined that Facility Location
Board Members should reside outside of the eligible casino zones.
“The
requirements for appointment to the Gaming Facility Location Board are
intentionally strict in order to ensure that only the best individuals
are selected and that integrity is paramount
throughout the entire siting process,” said Chairman-Designate Gearan.
“These individuals meet or exceed the criteria set forth in the law, and
we look forward to assisting them as they begin their important work.”
The
Gaming Facility Location Board members, who receive no compensation
other than expenses incurred in carrying out their duties, will commence
work promptly and expect to issue the Request
for Applications in March 2014.
A
statutorily mandated outside consultant to provide the Gaming Facility
Location Board members with analysis of the gaming industry and assist
with the comprehensive review and evaluation
of the applications will be selected in the very near future.
Casino siting timeline:
·
March 2014: Request for Casino Applications issued
·
June 2014: Bids due
·
June - August 2014: Gaming Facility Location Board reviews, evaluates submissions
·
Early Fall 2014: Commission commences licensing review of applicants
·
Early Fall 2014: Casino siting and operators formally announced
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