Proposed Constitutional Amendment Would Legalize Slots
September 27, 2006

The Ohio Learn & Earn Committee has placed a Constitutional amendment on the November ballot that would legalize slot machines in the state. Roughly three-thousand slots would be allowed at each of Ohio's seven horse racing tracks, and at two non-racing sites in downtown Cleveland.

According to proponents, the measure would generate approximately $2.8 billion in annual slot revenues, of which $850 million would be used to fund college scholarships for Ohio high school seniors. After reaching full funding (estimated at twelve years), the program would provide annual scholarships to Ohio high school graduates enrolled in Ohio colleges. The scholarships would be equivalent to the average cost of tuition at Ohio's undergraduate universities. Additionally, more than $200 million would be distributed across the state for economic development. Additional funds would be set aside for the counties and municipalities in which the sites are located, as well as a set amount each year for treatment and prevention of gambling addiction. In 4 years, the amendment would also allow voters in Cuyahoga county to approve table games in addition to slot machines, at the two independent gaming parlors.

Recent approval of the initiative came after backers initially came up short of the required 322,899 signatures necessary to have the measure placed on the ballot. After its original submission, the Secretary of State informed the committee that many of the signatures were invalid, and that they would have ten additional days to remedy the 8,700 signature deficiency. Over 44,000 additional signatures were submitted in an effort to get the slot amendment on the November 7 ballot. Last week the Secretary of State announced that the group had obtained enough signatures, and the measure (now called "Issue 3") will on the ballot.

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Councilwoman Drops Lawsuit
September 27, 2006

Cincinnati Councilwoman Leslie Ghiz dropped a lawsuit against the Ohio Learn & Earn Committee in which she alleged that the group, in circulating ballot petitions, failed to disclose that the measure would legalize gambling in the state. Ghiz had criticized the Committee for removing Cincinnati as a potential casino site in the state. According to an article in the Cincinnati Post, the Committee would send "an undisclosed amount of cash every year for ten years" to the city. The Post claims that as much as $25 million could be sent to the city as part of the settlement, which would be in addition to the $23 million that Hamilton County would already receive under general distribution from the Earn and Learn package. The settlement is, however, based on passage of the measure on November 7.

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Tribe Looks at Canal Fulton
September 27, 2006

The Eastern Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma, which is seeking to establish Native American gaming in Ohio, recently conducted a telephone survey of Canal Fulton residents according to an article in the Akron Beacon Journal. The Tribe has not disclosed the results of the survey, but claims that there is some interest in development of a casino in that area.

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Internet Gambling Site Closes Operations
September 27, 2006

According to an article in the Cincinnati Post, BetOnSports PLC recently closed its United States operations following the arrest of its chief executive, David Carruthers. Carruthers was indicted on twenty-two counts, including fraud and racketeering. The indictment resulted in a warrant, which was executed as Carruthers exited a plane at a Texas airport.

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