Busch agrees to unlink slots, taxes, Gazette, 3-19-04

The Gazette

Busch agrees to unlink slots, taxes

by Steven T. Dennis and Thomas Dennison
Staff Writers
Mar. 19, 2004

Ways and Means votes in play

ANNAPOLIS -- House Speaker Michael E. Busch has agreed to separate slot machines from tax hikes, giving in to one of Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.'s chief demands as the two men agreed to have dinner and discuss the issue that has dominated state politics for the past year.

Busch told The Gazette that a slots bill would die if it was tied to a tax hike because Republicans would vote against it.

House Ways and Means Chairwoman Sheila Ellis Hixson (D-Dist. 20) of Silver Spring long has advocated for a combination of a major tax hike and slots, and Busch (D-Dist. 30) of Annapolis has called for a penny sales tax hike and other tax measures, noting that slots alone would not fully fund the $1.3 billion Thornton Commission education formula.

But Ehrlich (R) has vowed to oppose any sales or income tax increases and said he would walk away from the issue if taxes are tied to slots.

Ehrlich, Busch and Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr. (D-Dist. 27) of Chesapeake Beach met to discuss slots on the second floor of the State House Tuesday. Ehrlich also invited Busch to dinner Sunday night in the governor's mansion with slots the chief item on the menu.

Busch said slots machines are just one of a number of revenue measures that the House will consider and cautioned that their legalization remains far from certain. Even if a bill clears the House, it will look far different from the governor's bill as amended by the Senate. Busch has derided that bill's more than $150 million a year in racing subsidies, while pushing state-owned facilities with the operations contracted out to maximize state control and profits.

Ehrlich said Wednesday that the Republican whip count in the House is in "the mid-30s," adding that members of the Ways and Means Committee are willing to vote for a slots bill if Busch turns them loose.

"The majority opinion in the House is that a reasonable slots package will pass," Ehrlich said. He was also optimistic that his meeting with Busch on Sunday night would be positive.

Ehrlich said progress was made in the Tuesday meeting but was vague about specifics. He gave slots a 50-50 chance in a radio interview Thursday.

Miller said he is "optimistic" about slots passing this year, noting he had been led to believe that slots and taxes would be coming in separate bills.

Busch's movement came as a Gazette survey of most of the members on the Ways and Means Committee found a willingness to vote for slots in some form, with only one member, Del. LeRoy Myers Jr. (R-Dist. 1C) of Clear Spring, saying he will definitely vote no.

Slots died last year in Ways and Means on a 16-5 vote.

Ehrlich appears to have had success convincing Dels. David G. Boschert (R-Dist. 33A) of Crownsville and Joseph R. Bartlett (R-Dist. 4A) of Middletown to reconsider their votes against his slots plan last year.

The administration ostracized Boschert and Bartlett last year, with Ehrlich spokesman Paul E. Schurick referring to them as "Boschert Who?" and "Bartlett Who?"

Both lawmakers now say that the governor deserves to have a vote in the full House.

Boschert said he acknowledges the state's need for more revenue, will not vote for taxes and does not see any other option available besides slots. Bartlett said he is considering voting for the governor's bill in committee, provided it is not tied to a tax increase, then voting against the measure on the House floor.

Myers said he still will vote no, adding that Bartlett's maneuver would not work for him.

"Either you're for it or you're against it," Myers said.

He added that he would try to amend the bill to exclude the Little Orleans racino planned near Cumberland by slots magnate William Rickman Jr.

Myers said he was elected because of his district's opposition to slots and the track.

Other votes are clearly in play.

A number of Democrats who voted against the bill last year said they do not support the governor's bill as passed by the Senate but would consider voting for the measure in some form.

Del. Salima Siler Marriott (D-Dist. 40) of Baltimore said she will support slots provided that financial support in the bill for the community around Pimlico is at least equal to the subsidies for purses.

Marriott said she sees slots as an economic development benefit.

Del. Anne R. Kaiser (D-Dist. 14) of Olney criticized the subsidies for racetracks and said she could not envision a bill that she could support, but would not rule it out.

Del. Nancy J. King (D-Dist. 39) of Montgomery Village said that she would consider voting for slots only if it was the only way to prevent the loss of education money.

Del. Jon S. Cardin (D-Dist. 11) of Baltimore said the bill should ensure that slots locations are restricted to the state's borders to recapture dollars lost to other states and minimize the negative impact to other entertainment venues.

Other votes conflict: Del. Victor R. Ramirez (D-Dist. 47) of Mount Rainier said he will not vote for slots if they are in Prince George's County, but Del. Carolyn J.B. Howard (D-Dist. 24) of Mitchellville, the chairwoman of the Prince George's County delegation, has supported the Senate bill's provisions that could put multiple parlors in the county.

Del. Obie Patterson (D-Dist. 26) of Fort Washington, chairman of the Legislative Black Caucus, said it is going to take a lot of convincing to get him to vote for slots, but he has not ruled it out.

Del. Bennett Bozman (D-Dist. 38B) of Berlin said he would vote for slots "as long as it's not in my back yard," referring to Ocean Downs, a harness-racing facility near Ocean City that owner Rickman is trying to get added to the bill.

Del. Henry B. Heller (D-Dist. 19) of Rockville said the only way he would vote for slots is if they are tied to a tax bill that would fully fund Thornton.

Del. Michael R. Gordon (D-Dist. 17) of Gaithersburg is undecided.

Del. Robert A. McKee (R-Dist. 2A) of Hagerstown said he supports the governor's bill but would oppose it if it is tied to a tax increase.

Meanwhile, Del. Jean B. Cryor (R-Dist. 15) of Potomac said she has been having second thoughts about supporting slots after backing last year's slots-at-tracks plan. She said she will vote against the bill if it gets too large. She said she is not enthusiastic about Busch's support for state-owned facilities and does not like talk of casinos.

"I don't have any doubt now that the speaker wants to pass a slots bill and have the stadium authority run it," she said.

The stadium authority had offered to build slots facilities, but has come under fire in an audit; its director resigned Thursday.

W. Minor Carter, a lobbyist for a coalition of slots opponents, said it is too early to tell how the committee will vote.

"The closer it gets to your house, the less likely you are to vote for them," he said. "The majority of Marylanders want slots, but don't want to see them, don't want to play them and they don't want them in their back yard."

The House Republican caucus held a news conference Thursday to urge Busch to allow the bill out of committee and onto the House floor. A hearing on House slots bills is scheduled for Tuesday, with a hearing on the Senate's slots bill March 30.

For complete coverage of the 2004 legislative section, go to www.gazette.net/annapolis2004/.