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Thursday, October 10, 2002
Casino backers initiate petition
Copyright © 2002 Blethen Maine Newspapers Inc. | ||
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Supporters of a tribal casino have begun a petition effort that would give Maine voters a chance to legalize casino gambling if the Legislature fails to enact a law in the upcoming session.
Think About It, a pro-casino political action committee, submitted a proposed referendum question to the secretary of state this week, the first step required for a citizen-sponsored initiative.
The question, submitted by former Gov. Kenneth Curtis, asks if voters favor allowing the Passamaquoddy and Penobscot Nation tribes to own and operate a resort casino if part of the gross revenue is used to fund public education and residential property tax relief.
The tribes want to build a $650 million casino off the Maine Turnpike in southern Maine.
Casino opponents in the state said the tribes' decision to turn to the referendum process came as no surprise, since all four of the candidates for governor have said they would veto a bill legalizing casino gambling.
"This is their last-ditch effort, to go to voters. It's not what they wanted to do, but what they've been forced to do," said Dennis Bailey, a spokesman for Casinos No! "Now we're looking at a yearlong debate and probably the most-expensive referendum campaign in Maine history."
But Erin Lehane, a project coordinator for the tribes, said leaders of the effort to build a casino have heard from many people who want to have a voice in the process.
"What we will do is get the 50,000 signatures, then the question will be submitted to the Legislature. They have the option to approve it," she said. "If they don't approve it, it'll just go to the people to vote on."
Under Maine law, activists who collect enough signatures can force a referendum unless the Legislature enacts what the referendum proposes. Lawmakers regularly defeat referendum questions and send them on to the voters.
The Legislature has enacted proposals. A citizen initiative drive would have put repeal of a sales tax on a variety of snack foods on the November 2001 ballot, but the Legislature acted first and voted in its 2000 session to repeal the tax.
The Secretary of State's Office is reviewing the casino question before issuing petitions for circulation.
The Maine Constitution says the number of signatures required for a referendum is 10 percent of the vote in the last gubernatorial election. In the most recent governor's race, 421,000 people voted.
The number of votes, and signatures needed, is expected to change after the Nov. 5 general election, so it is not yet known how many signatures will be needed for the casino question. Organizers want to put it on the November 2003 ballot.
Curtis had to submit the application to the state with the signatures of five registered Maine voters.
Signing the application were Biddeford Mayor Donna Dion, Penobscot Nation member Jean Mitchell-Evans of Portland, Lehane, Penobscot Nation member representative Donna Loring of Richmond and Augusta resident Andrea Smith.
Loring is the Penobscot representative to the Legislature and House chairwoman of a casino task force that is studying the effects of casino gambling on the economy, social services and infrastructure such as roads.
The committee is scheduled to hold a public hearing Oct. 25 in Augusta, and will hold a fourth and final meeting before issuing a report at the end of the year.
At a task force meeting last month, the committee heard from an economist hired by the tribes who predicted the casino would generate $727 million annually by its fifth year.
The tribes hope to receive $50 million each to improve the quality of life for their members, promote economic development and become self-sufficient.
Under the referendum's 20-year term, the tribes would pay the state 25 percent of the gross revenue generated by slot machines each year.
The state would not be able to change the amount of the payment.
According to the tribes' projections, the state would receive $97 million in slot revenue in the casino's first year of operation, and $119 million by its fifth year.
The two Maine tribes would pay local property taxes. They would also pay an estimated $11 million annually in sales and income taxes.
Once the tribes paid the state its gaming tax from the slot revenue, the Legislature would reimburse state, county and local governments for costs incurred as a result of the casino. Costs that would apply include mitigation for problem gambling, increased road costs due to more traffic, or the hiring of public safety officers to handle additional calls.
The tribes' economist estimated that annual costs to mitigate problem gambling would run between $500,000 and $2 million a year. He estimated other related impacts such as roadwork for additional traffic or more police officers would cost between $2 million and $4 million each year.
Once those costs are subtracted from the state's slot revenue, the arrangement stipulates the state would deposit 50 percent of the remainder in the state's Local Government Revenue Sharing Fund to use for residential property tax relief.
Another 40 percent would be used to supplement state aid to local schools, 5 percent would go to the Maine State Grant program, and 5 percent would be distributed by the Finance Authority of Maine to nonprofit organizations for post- secondary school scholarships.
State police would regulate gambling, and each employee would have to be licensed by state police. The state also would bill the tribes annually for the cost of regulating the casino and conducting related law enforcement investigations.
And if the state authorizes slot machines at any other location, with the exception of a tribal casino in Washington County, the agreement authorizes the tribes to stop its slot payments to the state.
The tribes have said they will not build where they are not wanted. Several York County towns already voted against hosting a casino. Officials in Biddeford and Sanford are interested in hosting a casino, and will hold local referendum votes this fall.
Staff Writer Grace Murphy can be contacted at 282-8228 or at:
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