Column: Casino-schools confusion

Guest column: CEO of Florida Chamber supports Amendment 3

By Mark Wilson

 

The Florida Chamber of Commerce has long advocated for restraint in amending Florida’s Constitution. We believe our constitution should only be amended in rare and extraordinary circumstances.

Amendment 3, which would require voter approval of future gambling expansion, meets that threshold. Keep in mind, Florida is creating 1 out of 11 new jobs in America. We don’t need the casino industry, they need Florida.

Rather than introduce anything new, the amendment simply reinforces language already in the constitution — a provision that gives voters the final say on gambling decisions. Florida voters inserted that protection in 1968 and it’s important we don’t let politicians work around it.

Their reasons for doing so remain valid today. The widespread introduction of Las Vegas-style casinos in Florida brings dubious benefits and potentially serious consequences for our state. Any decision to go in this direction should be done so with due diligence, much caution and voter input.

Voters exercised such caution when considering five gambling referendums from 1978 to 2004. Three times they rejected large casino resorts in Florida. But they also approved the Florida Lottery and the limited introduction of slot machines in Broward and Miami-Dade pari-mutuels.

Since 2005, when Florida lawmakers began attempting to take over gambling decisions, the restraint of voters has been replaced by the politics of Tallahassee. The drumbeat for more and bigger casinos from the powerful gambling lobby has been loud and non-stop.

There is no end game here. No matter how many casinos might be approved, there always will be pressure for more. We have seen this in other states, where the gambling industry continues to push for expansion even in markets so glutted that existing casinos are losing business and even going bankrupt, sometimes at taxpayer expense.

Consider New Jersey. The Atlantic City casino market imploded in 2014 because of an over-saturated market, throwing thousands out of jobs and the city into an economic depression.

However, New Jersey requires voter approval of gambling expansion. And by an overwhelming margin, voters rejected new casinos.

Voters serve as a controlling mechanism on an industry that often has no self-control of its own. They slow down decision-making and ensure the pros and cons of casino expansion are fully and publicly vetted.

As the organization representing Florida businesses, the Florida Chamber is focused on making Florida more competitive, and the casino business model is anything but that. It is not one that grows the economic pie, but rather one that often cannibalizes existing economic activity.

Casinos represent the past, whereas Florida is moving into the future.

This year Florida’s GDP topped $1 trillion, which if we were a country would place us 17th in the world. Florida’s economy is the 20th most diversified economy in American and wages are increasing.

U.S. News & World Report ranked us first nationally in higher education and the University of Florida now ranks among the top 10 public universities.

Noted University of Central Florida economist Sean Snaith describes Florida’s recovery from the Great Recession as “Phoenix-like.” One reason for that is Florida’s remarkably resilient tourism industry.

The Florida Chamber sees strong economic growth in Florida for the next 30 years.

All this is not by accident. It is due to a competitive business climate, smart policies and strong fiscal leadership.

The international casino conglomerates are desperate to get a toehold in Florida, not to add to what we have created but to feed off it.

Florida has come too far to go down this path without the people of Florida having a say. I’ll be voting yes on Amendment 3 because Florida’s future is worth protecting.

Mark Wilson is CEO of the Florida Chamber of Commerce. Email: mwilson@flchamber.com.

 

First Appeared in The Florida Times-Union

 

 

 

Don’t fall for it: Casinos are not good for children, education

By Peter Schorsch

Florida Politics

 

Did you know gambling casinos are good for children?

Spoiler alert: They’re not.

Yet that is the exact claim casino operators are making in an attempt to block Amendment 3, which would put voters in charge of any gambling expansion in Florida.

Using that logic, if politicians were not allowed to populate Florida with casinos, education funding will be gutted, and our children will resemble the poor, forlorn souls pictured on campaign propaganda.

At its foundation, the premise is a lie: Amendment 3 has nothing to do with education.

As a recent Miami Herald headline noted: “Don’t let the gambling industry confuse you on Amendment 3. It’s not about schools.”

The casinos are exploiting people’s natural tendency to support children and education. It’s disinformation honed by the industry’s political operatives in state after state, year after year.

Whenever they want to expand casinos, out come the “poor” children and schools.

And what happens if casinos win and set up shop? The money goes to them and politicians, and not schools.

Florida saw this in 2004 when South Florida pari-mutuels promised $500 million windfalls for public education if they were allowed to have slot machines. In fact, they said it was an “absolute guarantee” that they would back.

They got their slots, but the schools never got the half-billion.

Add to that the Florida Lottery windfall (which schools also never got), and Florida currently ranks 42nd nationally in school funding.

Florida teachers, who also rank 42nd in salary, are forced to pay for school supplies (nearly $500 a year) out of their own meager paychecks.

Of course, all that will turn around if only Floridians allow — wait for it — even more gambling.

Joining the big lie this time is MGM Resorts International, a gambling conglomerate based in Las Vegas, looking for a jackpot in Florida.

If you want to know how casinos helped schools in Nevada, consider this: The state’s education system has ranked dead last in the nation for the past three years, according to the prestigious Quality Counts analysis performed by Education Week. It ranks below Mississippi in per-pupil spending — by more than $1,000 a student.

Does anyone seriously believe MGM Resorts cares anything about Florida school children?

MGM had done this before, spending millions on a casino referendum in Maryland in 2012. That campaign promised, “millions for Maryland schools, guaranteed.”

Critics called it “slots for tots.” The Baltimore Sun called it “nothing more than Las Vegas casino hooey.”

And that’s what it turned out to be.

The massive MGM National Harbor Casino and Hotel is now up and running in Maryland, while schools struggle without the money that never arrived.

State Comptroller Peter Franchot told Baltimore’s WJZ-TV: “The problem is, it was always a hoax and it’s still a hoax perpetrated on the public.”

A report in CityLab noted: “Experts on gambling and state funding say that Maryland is only one of the dozens of states taking gambling revenue meant for education and using it for other purposes.”

Are voters going to fall for this again?

Will we let the same people who guaranteed schools $500 million from South Florida slot machines, and the same Las Vegas casino conglomerate that guaranteed millions for Maryland schools, pull the same old scam again?

Casino interests are populating their flyers and TV advertisements against Amendment 3 with pictures of children who look like their cellphones have been confiscated takes cynicism to a new level.

Perhaps it’s desperation setting in.

A recent Associated Industries of Florida poll is showing 69 percent of voters support Amendment 3, with only 17 percent opposed. AIF has been tracking the amendment since April with only small variations in those numbers.

Apparently, Florida voters are beginning to recognize “Las Vegas casino BS” when they see it.

 

First appeared in Florida Politics

 

 

LTE: Give voters control on Florida casinos

What do states as diverse as Texas and California, or New York and Georgia, all have in common?

Like about half the states in the country, they allow voters to have the final say on gambling expansion. This recognizes the fact that casinos can have a profound impact in the communities and states where they are located. And therefore the people should have a direct say in approving them.

This is what Amendment 3 will do for Florida. Voting yes will put the people of our state in charge of gambling decisions.

It is a right we used to enjoy. A provision added to the Florida Constitution in 1968 called for voter control of gambling. From 1978 through 2004, five gambling initiatives went to voters. Three times they rejected Las Vegas-style casinos, but they also approved the Florida Lottery and slot machines in pari-mutuels in Broward and Miami-Dade counties.

But after 2004, politicians in Tallahassee began ignoring the constitutional provision, ended voting and assumed control of gambling decisions. And ever since, we have had one gambling bill after another, crafted with the assistance of casino lobbyists, introduced in the Florida Legislature.

Amendment 3 rejoins Florida with the other states that require voter approval of gambling decisions. It restores voters’ rights so the politicians can never again take away our authority over gambling decisions.

This is your state. Gambling expansion should be your decision. Vote yes on Amendment 3.

Cheryl Taaffe, Port Orange

Letter-to-the-Editor first appeared in the Daytona Beach News-Journal

 

 

 

LTE: Amendment 3 offers voters a voice on casinos

Casinos can have major impacts on a community. Research shows they affect everything from local businesses to crime rates to social indicators such as gambling addiction and bankruptcy.

These are all reasons voters should be in charge of gambling expansion decisions. A yes vote on Amendment 3 will make that happen.

Right now, politicians and lobbyists in Tallahassee can put casinos anywhere they want. A prime example is Miami Beach, a city thriving with world-class restaurants, shopping, entertainment and cultural attractions.

The leaders and residents there adamantly opposed casinos, with former Mayor Phillip Levine stating “casinos are for cities that don’t have a lot going for them,” and Miami Beach “doesn’t in any shape, form or imagination need casinos.”

Yet, gambling interests are active in Tallahassee trying to get a casino built in Miami Beach. They don’t care what voters think or what residents think.

Amendment 3 gives the people of Florida the final say in these decisions. This is why the big casinos, including those hoping to set up shop in Miami Beach, so strongly oppose it. And why the Mayor of Miami Beach endorses it.

We have so much vested in our state and the communities we live in. We should have a say on an issue as important as casino gambling.

I strongly recommend voting yes on Amendment 3.

Mindy Koch, Boca Raton

Letter-to-the-Editor first appeared in the Sun-Sentinel

 

 

VOTERS IN CHARGE ANNOUNCES SOUTHWEST FLORIDA LEADERSHIP COMMITTEE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Wednesday, October 24, 2018

CONTACT

Mike Thomas

Mike@VotersinCharge.org

 

VOTERS IN CHARGE ANNOUNCES SOUTHWEST FLORIDA LEADERSHIP COMMITTEE

 

FORT MYERS, FL—Voters in Charge, the political committee sponsoring the statewide Yes on 3 campaign, today continued unveiling its local leadership committees. Members of local leadership committees include community, business, law enforcement and religious leaders throughout the state who are committed to ensuring that Florida voters are put in charge of casino gambling decisions in Florida.  Today the campaign proudly announces its local leadership for Southwest Florida. The list consists of a diverse group of prominent community leaders, business owners, and former elected officials from both sides of the aisle.

 

SWFL Chair:

Representative Ray Rodrigues, FL House Majority Leader

 

SWFL Committee Members:

Representative Matt Caldwell

Commissioner Bill McDaniel, Collier County BOCC

Commissioner Brian Hamman, Lee County BOCC

Commissioner Bill Truex, Charlotte County BOCC

Mayor Randy Henderson, Ft Myers Mayor

Jonathan Martin

Kevin Karnes, President SWFL Young Republicans

Carmen Salome

Luca L. Hickman. Esq.

Joseph Welsh

 

Amendment 3 ensures that Florida voters shall have the exclusive right to decide whether to authorize casino gambling in the State of Florida. Recent polling shows that more than 70 percent of Florida voters support this amendment. Amendment 3 enjoys bipartisan support and has been endorsed by the Florida Chamber of Commerce, Florida League of Women Voters, and the Florida Conference of the NAACP, among others.

“We are thrilled to have the support of so many pillars of the community for this important amendment,” said Voters in Charge Chairman John Sowinski. “For most of our lifetimes, decisions about casino gambling were left up to the voters. It is past time to return that right to Floridians and take it away from politicians and special interest groups in Tallahassee.”

For more information about the Yes on 3 campaign, including a local contact and regional office, please visit https://votersincharge.org/regional-offices/

 

 

###

 

 

The Daily Commercial Recommends YES on Amendment 3

AMENDMENT 3

Amendment 3 is subtitled “Voter control of gambling in Florida,” and according to the ballot summary, approval of the measure “ensures that Florida voters shall have the exclusive right to decide whether to authorize casino gambling by requiring that in order for casino gambling to be authorized under Florida law, it must be approved by Florida voters” in a statewide referendum.

The proposal seeks, in essence, to re-establish and codify the role of voters in the approval and expansion of gambling — long a hot topic in Florida.

In recent decades, the Legislature and governor have asserted more influence over casino gambling. This amendment is intended, in part, to reverse that trend.

The Seminole Tribe of Florida, which operates casinos and offers various forms of gambling, and Disney, which has opposed expansion of gaming, have contributed heavily — in their self-interest — to the committee behind this initiative. Those contributions are enough to give voters pause but not enough to warrant opposition; after all, the tribe and Disney approach the issue from opposite sides.

Preserving voter control of gambling is important. It also important to protect the Florida brand, and as we have seen in other states that have legalized widespread casino gambling, it rarely leads to the positive things that are promised up front.

We recommend voting YES on Amendment 3.

Click here for the Daily Commercial Recommends YES on Amendment 3

 

 

Column: Let voters decide on expanded gambling

By: Will Weatherford, former Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives

October 19, 2018

I am writing today to deal with unfinished business.

After spending eight years in the Florida Legislature, the last two serving as speaker of the House, I came to a conclusion about the future of casino gambling in Florida.

Some decisions are better put into the hands of the people.

So in 2014, I proposed a constitutional amendment giving voters control over gambling. The idea never made it through the Legislature and on to the ballot, but the need for it has not diminished. So Florida voters took matters into their own hands.

More than 1 million Floridians signed petitions to put Amendment 3 on the ballot. It puts the voters in charge of gambling decisions.

I would like to claim I was ahead of the curve in promoting this idea four years ago.

But back in 1968, my predecessors in the Florida Legislature had the same idea. They recognized that gambling wasn’t just another issue. The impact casinos could have on communities and the state warranted a higher authority than the Legislature to sign off on gambling expansion decisions.

And so they deferred to the people, putting a provision in the Florida Constitution that prohibited most forms of gambling, unless voters passed an amendment to allow them.

Five times, from 1978 to 2004, voters weighed in on gambling initiatives. They rejected three proposals to build Las Vegas-style casinos, but they also approved the Florida Lottery as well as slot machines in Broward and Miami-Dade pari-mutuels.

The conclusion might be voters were open-minded, yet understandably cautious.

If only Florida lawmakers left well enough alone. But instead, in more recent years, state legislators went in the opposite direction of their predecessors from 1968. Faced with conflicting legal opinions, the Legislature considered dozens of proposals that would greatly expand casino gambling in Florida without voter sign-off.

From my personal experience, I can tell you this was a mistake. Casino interests have become one of the most powerful special interest groups in Tallahassee. The pressure they apply to the political process is non-stop. It is why, almost every legislative session, we see casino expansion on the agenda.

The Legislature only meets for 60 days every year, so there is much to do and little time to do it. The time, energy and resources spent on gambling bills have made them an ongoing diversion. It is frustrating to see the priorities of Floridians — such as jobs, education, health care and the environment — take a backseat to the priorities of casinos.

I have heard many times the call for Tallahassee to come up with a “comprehensive solution’’ to gambling — that we can allow a resort casino here or there, open the door to more slot machines outside South Florida and then call it a day. It is a mythical concept. No matter how many casinos are approved, no matter how many forms of gambling are allowed, the demand for more will come as quickly as the next legislative session. It is what I once called the drip, drip, drip of gambling expansion.

In watching this process play out, I began to appreciate the wisdom of our predecessors in 1968. Tallahassee is not the place for gambling decisions.

If nothing more, taking gambling off the political agenda will allow lawmakers to focus on the issues that matter most to their constituents.

Florida certainly wouldn’t be alone in allowing voter control over gambling. About half of the states have a similar requirement.

In the past few years, voters in states such as New York, New Jersey, Maine, Ohio and Maryland have weighed in on gambling expansion. If there is a trend in how they decide, it is that they weigh each proposal on its individual merits, approving some and rejecting others.

Consider New Jersey. In 1978, voters there became the first in the country to approve a major expansion of gambling, allowing casinos in Atlantic City. After multiple casinos there went bankrupt in 2014, gambling interests and their political supporters pushed for more casinos in northern New Jersey.

Almost 80 percent of voters rejected the idea, the most lopsided referendum result in the state’s history.

Voters know when to say when. They serve as a check and balance on the political process.

Voter control works. That is why I proposed restoring it in 2014 and why I support Amendment 3 now.

Will Weatherford served in the Florida House of Representatives from 2006 – 2014, and was House speaker from 2012-14.

Click here for the ‘Column: Let voters decide on expanded gambling’ on Tampa Bay Times

 

 

 

Amendment 3 is not about schools

Don’t let the gambling industry confuse you on Amendment 3. It’s not about schools.

By Fabiola Santiago

Politicians count on voters having short memories: forgetting, and by proxy, forgiving the bad policy they championed, the bad votes they cast.

I seldom forget the battles, and definitely not the big ones, like the Florida Legislature’s recent attempts to expand gambling in the state and Miami-Dade’s courtship of mega casinos.

Both attempts, led by the Republicans in charge, could have turned into quality-of-life-changing debacles, but they were averted for one reason only: Public outcry.

Nobody wants casinos — and all the documented social ills this industry brings with it — in their neighborhood. Voters — Republicans and Democrats — have said no to gambling expansion in previous referendums, but lawmakers just won’t quit trying.

Why?

The gambling industry has its eyes set on Florida — and it has the capital to handsomely compensate lobbyists, influencers and public relations experts who push for it as an economic driver. And certainly, the gambling giants have shown how generously they can fund the campaigns of politicians who keep finding ways of proposing more and bigger venues.

Amendment 3 would put a real damper on their wily ways.

A Yes vote on Amendment 3 would take the power to expand gambling in Florida away from politicians and put it where it belongs — the people. It would enshrine in the Florida Constitution that the state cannot expand gambling without the approval of voters.

If this citizen-driven amendment weren’t good for us — if it weren’t a restraint and check on the gambling industry and its complicit lot — why would they be campaigning so hard against Floridians having a voice on the issue?

The latest tactic of the gambling lobby comes by way of ads that tell you a Yes vote would be an anti-schools vote.

Nonsense.

Schools have both state and local budgets that fund them.

As for the size of the state’s tax dollar pot, there’s already plenty of gambling in Florida that generates revenue — including the state lottery, which funds education, although not at the levels originally promised. Because everything politicians promise — like jobs and growth — has hiccups and exceptions, and legislatures and administrations change things.

If you want to help better fund schools in Miami-Dade, for example, vote to give teacher pay raises on referendum #362.

But don’t fall for the line that gambling funds education. Gambling funds crime and corruption; you can’t hire enough law enforcement to keep up.

Miami dodged a bullet on two fronts after a Las Vegas mogul and the Malaysian company Genting descended on the town, hired the best political operators as “consultants” — and immediately got the city and county mayors on board with opening destination mega casinos in downtown. Genting handed out contracts and junket trips to Malaysia to show off their casinos to people connected to city government, like players at the Beacon Council and the Chamber of Commerce.

Everyone was ready to cut themselves a slice of the pie — and ready to turn our beautiful arts districts into casino gambling dens.

But the overwhelming backlash from better-thinking heads prevailed and both former Miami Mayor Tomás Regalado and Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez had to back off.

But for quite a while, the Genting mega casino was all set up to go on the waterfront, as the former president of the Beacon Council, Frank Nero, will remind you. He lost his job largely because he blew the whistle on the underhanded fast-tracking and stood publicly in opposition.

“I’m not morally against gambling, been to casinos,” he wrote me Thursday. “But study after study (which I read and studied) has shown casinos have a negative economic impact. Would be especially the case for Miami-Dade where we were trying to diversify the economy and our non-tourism business development and did not wish to be known as Vegas South. Most jobs are low paying, only ones who really benefit are casino interests.”

And, believe me, when gambling giants set up shop, they generate such revenue that they own the towns where they operate. Every time I wrote about this issue back then, I got emails from business people in Bimini, where Genting operates, telling me just that. They run that island.

We certainly don’t need them running Florida.

This amendment doesn’t end the threat.

But at least, voters take control with the final word.

Link to Fabiola Santiago’s Column on the Miami Herald

 

 

 

Rep. Clay Yarborough: Amendment 3 gives us the final say on casinos

Casinos can have major impacts on a community; research shows they affect everything from local businesses to crime rates to social indicators like gambling addiction and bankruptcy.

These are all reasons why voters should be in charge of gambling expansion decisions.

Voting yes on Amendment 3 will make that happen.

Right now politicians and lobbyists in Tallahassee can put casinos anywhere they want. A prime example is Miami Beach, a city thriving with world-class restaurants, shopping, entertainment and cultural attractions.

The leaders and residents there are adamantly opposed to casinos. As one former Miami Beach mayor stated, “Casinos are for cities that don’t have a lot going for them.”

Yet gambling interests are active in Tallahassee trying to get a casino built in Miami Beach. They don’t care what voters think or what residents think.

Amendment 3 gives Floridians the final say in such decisions, which is why the big casinos so strongly oppose it.

We have so much vested in Florida’s family-friendly brand and the communities in which we live. We should have a say on an issue as important as casino gambling.

I strongly encourage everyone to vote yes on Amendment 3.

State Rep. Clay Yarborough, Jacksonville

Yarborough represents District 12 in the Florida House.

 

 

Ocala Star Banner Recommends Voting YES on Amendment 3

AMENDMENT 3

Amendment 3 is subtitled “Voter control of gambling in Florida,” and according to the ballot summary, approval of the measure “ensures that Florida voters shall have the exclusive right to decide whether to authorize casino gambling by requiring that in order for casino gambling to be authorized under Florida law, it must be approved by Florida voters” in a statewide referendum.

The proposal seeks, in essence, to re-establish and codify the role of voters in the approval and expansion of gambling — long a hot topic in Florida.

In recent decades, the Legislature and governor have asserted more influence over casino gambling. This amendment is intended, in part, to reverse that trend.

The Seminole Tribe of Florida, which operates casinos and offers various forms of gambling, and Disney, which has opposed expansion of gaming, have contributed heavily — in their self-interest — to the committee behind this initiative. Those contributions are enough to give voters pause but not enough to warrant opposition; after all, the tribe and Disney approach the issue from opposite sides.

Preserving voter control of gambling is important. It also important to protect the Florida brand, and as we have seen in other states that have legalized widespread casino gambling, it rarely leads to the positive things that are promised up front.

We recommend voting YES on Amendment 3.

Click here for Ocala Star Banner Recommending YES Vote on Amendment 3

 

 

Orlando Sentinel Recommends YES Vote on Amendment 3

Amendment 3: Vote Yes

The Legislature has made a complete, confusing hash of gambling policy in Florida.

Amendment 3 proposes holding a statewide vote on any new proposal for casino-type gambling. Someone who wanted to open a new casino would have to get many thousands of signatures and put it on the ballot for a referendum to alter the state constitution.

At first blush, it might seem like overkill. And in the past, the Sentinel has been squeamish about larding up the constitution with what should be the Legislature’s responsibility. But the Legislature has made a complete, confusing hash of gambling policy in Florida. And gambling interests have vast sums of money to influence individual legislators. This at least would place such a consequential decision in the hands of voters, which is why we recommend voting yes on Amendment 3.

Click here for the Orlando Sentinel Recommends YES vote on Amendment 3

 

Palm Beach Post Recommends ‘YES’ on Amendment 3

 

Just one other of the 12 amendments on the ballot arrived there by citizen petition. That’s Amendment 3, which, true to its origin, would require that all approvals of new casino gambling be made through a citizen-initiative constitutional amendment.

In effect, this amendment removes the Florida Legislature from approving new casinos — an understandable response to state lawmakers’ spectacular inability over the last few years to deliver on gambling issues.

The Legislature would still oversee, regulate and tax gambling that voters approve. And lawmakers would still be in charge of okaying other types of gambling, such as poker rooms, bingo, lottery and fantasy sports.

The amendment is backed heavily by the Seminole Tribe, Walt Disney Co. and the group No Casinos Inc. As that implies, the necessity to mount statewide petition and election campaigns will make it very hard for new casinos to crop up in Florida, effectively handing the Seminoles a monopoly for their existing casinos and keeping tourism focused on family-friendly attractions.

We don’t view that as such a bad thing. Vote “Yes” on Amendment 3.

 

Click Here for the Palm Beach Post Recommends ‘YES’ on Amendment 3.

 

 

VOTERS IN CHARGE ANNOUNCES PALM BEACH COUNTY LEADERSHIP COMMITTEE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

October 15, 2018

CONTACT

Mike Thomas

Mike@votersincharge.org

 

VOTERS IN CHARGE ANNOUNCES PALM BEACH COUNTY LEADERSHIP COMMITTEE

 

PALM BEACH, FL—Voters in Charge, the political committee sponsoring the statewide Yes on 3 campaign, today continued unveiling its local leadership committees. Members of local leadership committees include community, business, law enforcement and religious leaders throughout the state who are committed to ensuring that Florida voters are put in charge of casino gambling decisions in Florida.  Today the campaign proudly announces its local leadership in Palm Beach County. The list consists of a diverse group of prominent community leaders, business owners, and elected officials from both sides of the aisle.

 

Palm Beach County Chairs:

Mayor Jeri Muoio, West Palm Beach

The Honorable Mary Brandenburg, Former State Representative

Julio Fuentes, President & CEO of the Florida Hispanic Chamber of Commerce

Rachelle Lipman, President of the Kings Point Democratic Club

 

Palm Beach County Committee Members:

The Honorable Sylvia Moffett, Former West Palm Beach Commissioner

Mindy Koch, President of the Boca/Delray Democratic Club & Former Educator

The Honorable David Smith, Former West Palm Beach Commissioner & Local Business Owner

The Honorable Ben Klug, Former Jupiter Councilman

Jose Garcia, President of Latinos in Action

Bill Newgent, City Voice Podcast Host & Real Estate Investor

Dana Aberman, President of S.E.E. South Florida

Alexandria Ayala, Vice President of the PBC Young Democrats

Craig Agranoff, Political Science Professor

Daniella Suarez, High School Math Teacher

Paula Morra, Community Activist

 

Amendment 3 ensures that Florida voters shall have the exclusive right to decide whether to authorize casino gambling in the State of Florida. Recent polling shows that more than 70 percent of Florida voters support this amendment. Amendment 3 enjoys bipartisan support and has been endorsed by the Florida Chamber of Commerce, Florida League of Women Voters, and the Florida Conference of the NAACP, among others.

“We are thrilled to have the support of so many pillars of the community for this important amendment,” said Voters in Charge Chairman John Sowinski. “For most of our lifetimes, decisions about casino gambling were left up to the voters. It is past time to return that right to Floridians and take it away from politicians and special interest groups in Tallahassee.”

For more information about the Yes on 3 campaign, including a local contact and regional office, please visit https://votersincharge.org/regional-offices/

 

###

 

 

 

Florida Times-Union Recommends YES vote on Amendment 3

Editorial: Sorting out confusing amendments for the voters

AMENDMENT 3: Yes

This proposal would require any new casino gambling establishments to be approved by a citizen-led constitutional amendment.

It wouldn’t affect the Legislature’s authority over dog racing, horse racing or the Seminole Tribe casinos. Nor would it stop the state from regulating or taxing any gambling operation, including casinos.

It has a rare group of supporters, including Disney World and the Seminole Nation as well as anti-casino groups. It is opposed by someone we respect, Howard Korman of Jacksonville Greyhound Racing.

After study and interviews, we are inclined to support the amendment for three reasons:

1. We’re not confident in the Legislature’s ability to tackle this issue, especially given all the money being thrown at it from all sides.

2. Both the Florida Chamber of Commerce and the League of Women Voters support it, a rarity.

3. The proposal isn’t automatically anti-gambling or anti-casino. Between 1978 and 2004, voters approved two gambling initiatives and turned down three.

Click here for the Jacksonville Times-Union Recommends YES vote on Amendment 3

 

 

Sarasota Herald Tribune Recommends YES vote on Amendment 3

 

Sarasota Herald Tribune Recommends YES vote on Amendment 3

 

Amendment 3 is subtitled “Voter control of gambling in Florida.”

According to the ballot summary, approval of the measure “ensures that Florida voters shall have the exclusive right to decide whether to authorize casino gambling by requiring that in order for casino gambling to be authorized under Florida law, it must be approved by Florida voters” in a statewide referendum.

The proposal seeks, in essence, to re-establish and codify the role of voters in the approval and expansion of gambling — long a hot topic in Florida.

In recent decades, the Legislature and governor have asserted more influence over casino gambling. This amendment is intended, in part, to reverse that trend.

The Seminole Tribe of Florida, which operates casinos and offers various forms of gambling, and Disney, which has opposed expansion of gaming, have contributed heavily — in their self-interest — to the committee behind this initiative. Those contributions are enough to give voters pause but not enough to warrant opposition; after all, the tribe and Disney approach the issue from opposite sides.

Preserving voter control of gambling is important. We recommend voting YES, for Amendment 3.

 

Click here for Sarasota Herald Tribune Recommends YES vote on Amendment 3

 

 

 

 

Miami Herald Recommends YES vote on Amendment 3

 

AMENDMENT 3: VOTE YES

 

Voter Control of Gambling in Florida: If approved, this high-interest amendment gives voters the exclusive right to authorize expansions of casino gambling in Florida. That authority currently rests with both the Legislature and voters.

In effect, this would prevent the Legislature from passing laws to expand gambling or put an amendment on the ballot to do so, putting the power of bringing more casino gambling on residents. However, voters in one part of the state could decide who should get casinos for other parts of the state — like Miami-Dade. That’s concerning. And this would benefit larger companies that have the resources to gather hundreds of thousands signature needed for a referendum, for or against.

But those who oppose casinos, like this Editorial Board, have come out strong in support of Amendment 3 — verbally and financially. They include the League of Women Voters, No Casinos, the Fontainebleau hotel, plus the Walt Disney Co. and the casino-operating Seminole Tribe, which, of course, have franchises to protect.

Click here for Miami Herald Recommends YES vote on Amendment 3

 

 

 

 

Guest column: Amendment 3 will place gambling decisions in hands of public

Efforts continue to allow for broadening of gambling in Florida.

Amendment 3 provides an opportunity for a focused, objective public policy discussion on this industry. It will put the decision on whether to expand gambling in the hands of the public rather than the politicians and the lobbyists representing gambling interests.

Hopefully, if passed, this will give the public the opportunity to discover the true costs and benefits of expanded legalized gambling in Florida. The public and private sectors must engage in an objective, unbiased cost benefit analysis of casino gambling. Recent events to expand this industry in Florida prior to the potential passage of the referendum underscores the importance of voting yes on Amendment 3.

The proponents of expanded casino gambling cite job growth, additional tourism, increasing business and tax revenues and decreasing the local community’s tax burden as the economic benefits of casino gambling. Less often mentioned are the costs of crime, compulsive gambling, erosion of work ethic, traffic congestion and other social costs.

The key issue is: Will the expansion of casino gambling in Florida hinder or foster economic development in Florida?

Will casinos draw from other venues and sectors? Will expanded gambling benefit or have a negative impact on the perception and reality of the growth of a broad-based diversified economy?

Before the state and local governments agree to support the expansion of gambling, as attractive as the proposals may seem, an objective dialogue must evaluate the potential short and long-term impacts on Florida. Most importantly, the citizens should have the final say.

Land speculation could inflate prices of real estate and appraised value of land around casino development, ensuring that no one could afford to buy or rent near the property. Many merchants may have to find locations elsewhere. Residential displacement could be an end result.

Only employees who have been trained to work in casinos will be able to get the higher paying skilled jobs at casinos. Few locals are trained for these jobs currently. Why Require new casinos to train local workers so those jobs go to the local community. No casino should open until the local workforce can be trained.

Casinos often have a negative impact on neighboring businesses because consumers are encouraged to stay in the casino to spend their money instead of going to local restaurants and merchants.

The social costs of alcoholism, gambling addiction, prostitution, organized and street crime social costs are usually vastly underestimated by local government.

Who pays for traffic and infrastructure costs?

What will be the impact on tourism, economic development and revitalizations?

What is the net tax gain to state and local governments? The state is usually the major beneficiary of new tax revenues while local governments receive proportionately less, and usually assume most of the costs.

Will employees with criminal records be allowed to work at the casinos? What controls are needed? How can we ensure that local companies are equitably represented as casino vendors and service providers?

Additional revenue will be needed to promote non-casino industries to help local and expanding industries in Florida.

Amendment 3 will ensure the public will have objective and thorough analysis, not funded by the casinos or anyone invested in gambling prior to any approved expansion of gambling in Florida.

As an economic development professional of 40 years, who has witnessed the false promises this industry has made, I recommend ayes vote on Amendment 3.

Frank R. Nero of Sanibel is the former Jacksonville Deputy Mayor and director of the former Downtown Development Association from 1990 to 1996.

 

First appeared in Florida Times-Union (10/7/18)

 

 

 

Amendment 3 Does NOT Affect School Funding!

By: Mike Thomas

Voters in Charge

 

I appreciate there are so many lies, and so little time. But given the importance of the casino gambling issue in Florida, we need to bring to your attention this false mailer put out by opponents of Amendment 3, the Voters Control of Gambling initiative. Casino interests are making obviously false claims about education funding and gambling. It’s an old scam, but this latest version is particularly egregious.

Their mailer claims Amendment 3 “will gut school funding.”

You be the judge.

They make three claims:

1) Without Amendment 3, the state will approve new casinos bringing in $200 million annually. How can you possibly make such an assumption? And how do you gut education funding that doesn’t currently exist? Simple answer: you don’t.

2) Amendment 3 could remove existing slot machines costing schools $250 million. This concerns slot machines at a single pari-mutuel in Hialeah. It is a dubious claim and it was addressed by the Florida Supreme Court in this ruling(page 10), which put Amendment 3 on the ballot. On their mailer, the casino interests use the word “could” and then multiply annual state proceeds from these slot machines ($25 million) by 10 years to generate the $250 million. This multiplier wasn’t disclosed except in very small type at the bottom of the mailer. That’s just sneaky.

3) “Could stop some types of card games costing Florida $80 million a year.” This apparently refers to so-called “designated player games.”  They say Amendment 3 would get rid of the designated player games going on now at certain pari-mutuel facilities.  What they fail to mention is that a federal judge found these games to be a violation of the Seminole Compact, and the state entered into a consent agreement to shut them down.  The Department of Business and Professional Regulation is in rulemaking now to eliminate them – with or without Amendment 3.  Because these games violate the gaming compact with the Seminole Tribe of Florida, they are currently putting at risk up to $300 million in tribal payments to the state. All that aside, once again we see the same deception as noted in claim number 2. The casino interest took the $8 million generated annually from the card games, multiplied it by 10 years to get a bigger number, then disclaimed it where nobody would see. Also, the $8 million from the card games goes into general revenue, not any education fund.

So, in total, their 3 claims actually boil down to the improbable loss of $25 million in education funding from slot revenues at one pari-mutuel. The state spends more than $20 billion annually on education…

Amendment 3 does just one thing – it puts Florida voters in control of casino gambling proposals in our state. Vote YES on Amendment 3!

 

 

 

 

VOTERS IN CHARGE ANNOUNCES BROWARD COUNTY LEADERSHIP COMMITTEE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Friday, October 5, 2018

CONTACT

Mike Thomas

Mike@VotersinCharge.org

 

 

VOTERS IN CHARGE ANNOUNCES BROWARD COUNTY LEADERSHIP COMMITTEE

 

LAUDERDALE, FL—Voters in Charge, the political committee sponsoring the statewide Yes on 3 campaign, today continued unveiling its local leadership committees. Members of local leadership committees include community, business, law enforcement and religious leaders throughout the state who are committed to ensuring that Florida voters are put in charge of casino gambling decisions in Florida. Today the campaign proudly announces its local leadership in Broward County. The list consists of a diverse group of prominent community leaders, business owners, and elected officials from both sides of the aisle.

 

Broward County Committee Members:

The Honorable Diane Bendekovic, Mayor of Plantation and Former Educator

The Honorable Ben Sorenson, Fort Lauderdale City Commission

The Honorable Richard Rosenzweig, Former Commissioner Deerfield Beach

The Honorable Donna Pilger Korn, Broward County School Board

The Honorable Robin Bartleman, Broward County School Board

Richard Hoye, First Vice Chair Broward Democratic Party and Broward County Public School Teacher

Jeff Pole, Second Vice Chair, Broward Democratic Party

August Mangenay, President of the Margate Democratic Club

Mitchell Stollberg, Chair, Legislative Committee, Democratic Progressive Caucus of Florida

Anthony Quackenbush, Democratic Professionals Network

Laurie Plotnick, Democratic Party Area Leader Coral Springs, Former Educator and Principal

 

Amendment 3 ensures that Florida voters shall have the exclusive right to decide whether to authorize casino gambling in the State of Florida. Recent polling shows that more than 70 percent of Florida voters support this amendment. Amendment 3 enjoys bipartisan support and has been endorsed by the Florida Chamber of Commerce, Florida League of Women Voters, and the Florida Conference of the NAACP, among others.

“We are thrilled to have the support of so many pillars of the community for this important amendment,” said Voters in Charge Chairman John Sowinski. “For most of our lifetimes, decisions about casino gambling were left up to the voters. It is past time to return that right to Floridians and take it away from politicians and special interest groups in Tallahassee.”

For more information about the Yes on 3 campaign, including a local contact and regional office, please visit https://votersincharge.org/regional-offices/

###