Legislators wants public to weigh in on gambling
Published Thursday, April 10, 2008
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Stumble It!ANCHORAGE — State legislators are moving quickly toward changing the state constitution so that a public vote would be necessary before any legalized gambling for profit can take place in Alaska.
The move is in response to an initiative that will appear on the August ballot. The initiative would create a commission with the power to authorize gambling without the Legislature’s approval.
With four days left in the legislative session, the bill is moving forward quickly.
The state House voted 33-6 in favor of the constitutional amendment this week. It now goes to the Senate. Judiciary Committee Chairman Hollis French said he thinks it has a real shot at passing.
If the Senate does pass the constitutional amendment in time and the governor signs it, the idea would go to voters for approval in the November election. That’s presumably before the gaming commission could get set up and act.
“I want this to go into the constitution, that people will always have a say,” said Anchorage Democratic Rep. Harry Crawford, who sponsored the measure with Eagle River Republican Rep. Nancy Dahlstrom.
As things stand now, it is up to the Legislature to decide whether to allow gambling beyond the limited number of pull-tabs, bingo, ice classics, pools, raffles and the like that are now legal to benefit nonprofits. Recent years have seen fights in the Legislature over whether to expand allowable gambling to include video poker, a casino, lotteries or card rooms.
The Legislature refused to do so. That’s when people associated with the bar and restaurant industry trade group CHARR produced the initiative for an Alaska Gaming Commission. CHARR members had lobbied for the legalization of video gambling machines in bars and clubs.
The proposed commission would regulate existing gaming in Alaska, which is now overseen by the state Department of Revenue. It would also have the power to expand gambling.
Darwin Biwer, owner of Darwin’s Theory, a bar in Anchorage, said initiative backers collected more than 50,000 signatures while getting the measure on the August ballot. He said the constitutional amendment is an attempt to thwart the will of the voters to decide by initiative.
“It’s kind of embarrassing to even do such a thing,” Biwer said.
Community Discussion
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How about a 'Royal Flush' of the legislature this November.
Casino gambling would be the best thing to happen up here since the pipeline. And just as controversial.
The jobs created both in construction and service industries would be great.
The taxes that could be collected by local government could make our eternal argument of property tax vs sales tax null and void.
The tourists would love it, and would be begging to spend more of their money right here. In winter, the Asian tourists would be excellent customers.
We dont have to build Las Vegas. Just a simple casino or two. I'm pretty sure that we could find investors very easily.
So what does the state legislature do? Throw another roadblock in the way. They are unbelievable.
U know that I hate to fly over to Las Vegas and enjoy to play games at casino then fly back to Alaska in 1 or 2 days. If flight is canecl I would lose my job and stuck and low on money in Las Vegas ........ If not get any luck
Costty to stay at hotel , food , enjoy , round airfare and plus money for playing games lot of money to spead. IF WE LIVE IN ALASKA we can drive up and enjoy at casino. so I dont having problem...
Weigh in?? O.K. How about 270 lbs.
Now deal me a hand, please. Thanks.
Thank goodness for that general welfare clause; without it, when I turned 18 years old decades ago, I'd have had to take on the responsibility for my own decisions, and would've had to have stopped relying on the state and the feds to keep me safe fro my own self-imposed moral decay.
Thank goodness that they're there, now. Otherwise I'd have to hire a baby-sitter to protect me from my frailties and naivete'.
Sheesh!! Ain't freedom grand??!!
Shuffle up and deal!
LOL
a nice casino using and old time theme would draw em in like flies. What a great boost this would be for our town. Maybe my relatives would now come and visit!!
I thought that frontiers and gambling were supposed to go hand-in-hand. We don't need big Vegas style casinos; western-style saloons would be great. Of course cameras would be useful on cutting down on cheating and violence, as would alcohol consumption limits while gambling. Legalizing (regulated) prostitution could be beneficial too. Of course the Feds would never really allow it.
I'm not so sure.
There's plenty of casinos in other parts of the Lower-48, and Nevada's brothels seemed to be doing fairly well the last I heard. (Has sometng happened there that I'm not aware of??)
I think that there's -NUMEROUS- areas of personal choices and conduct over which the states should begin throwing off the Feds' over-reaching tentacles that've evolved as authoritarian mutations of the commerce and general welfare clauses, in what should appear to be what they are; blatant violations of both the 10th and 9th Amendments.
The theocrats who find offense in real individual liberty can always relocate to Iran. They're quite accepting of such tyranny there, from what I understand.
Yes! Yes! Yes! Lets do it! Yes!
Wow, is this one of those rare, rare cases where we all agree?
[Even glaicerles and I can agree on this one!]
Legalizing (regulated) prostitution is also an AWESOME idea. Can anyone tell me, beyond the obvious religious objections which have no place in legislation, why we wouldn't want to do that?
Anyone ever been to Deadwood South Dakota? Something like that would be awesome.
We could outpass Dawson City without a doubt!!! The winter tourism would be outstanding, and the summer tourism would go nuts!! If we started with the Riverboat Nenana, put a casino in it with historic gambling, wow, the possibilities are endless!! I am for getting it going immediately, and yes, I agree that legalized prostitution is good also. Fairbanks is always saying how poor it is....that would be fixed forever!!
Hmmmm Profits for the state and the people of Alaska that don't come from Fossil fuels. Wow how novel is that? Could lower property taxes around the state for everyone, create jobs for the entire state not excluding tourism. Just think, Build a green casino at chena hot springs. All green, and call it the northern lights casino. Think of what that would do for the interior. Well I am sure the moral minority will exorcism these bad spirits right out of the voters.
Dudes and Dudettes, they're railroading an ammendment to our state constitution through, to head off a legitimate vote! I hope Sarah uses her line item veto if this one lands on top of her desk.
This is transparently twisted and you can't convince me that this is the majority opinion of Alaskans' anymore. Times have changed alot since that last vote and who knows, maybe there will be less apathy and more that actually show up on election day to the polls.
Oh well, I can dream. I'm saving my nickels and quarters now too, just in case!
Lets go legislature!!! Legalize gambling NOW!!!!
Imagine all the revenue that would be pulled in on DUI's alone!
Riverboat Discovery Casino? huh? Think about it.
I am for it only if they allow smoking and of course drinking at the poker table. I like to combine all my "vice."
Even if they did amend the constitution to make it go before the general public for a vote, from what I'm seeing here, it wouldn't be all that hard to get a vote of the people to tell the legislature that this is what we want. They may be throwing up roadblocks, but hell, aren't those just challenges waiting to be tackled?
As long as it's only historic gambling, I'm for it. I'd hate to see our bars, taverns, and lodges become filled with nothing but rows and banks of electronic gaming machines as has happened in Montana. Drove me nuts down there after I'd walk into a bar and all I'd hear was bee-boop-beeboop-beebee-eeee-boop-dingdingding-booop.........It was so bad you couldn't have a conversation with anybody(not that any of the entranced zombies behind the foul beepboxes were capable anyway).
Samiam I think I agree with you we don't need to change the constitution to get "gambling" which I'm totally for. It sounds like a Trojan horse to me. Let us get our foot in the door, with a constitutional convention . Then we can change it all we want. I notice it's on a fast track, hurry hurry up now if you don't vote for it now you will never be able to gamble ever.
THE SPIRIT OF THE GOLD RUSH IS ON. Alaskans are risk takers for sure or we wouldn't be here. And besides aren't we gambling every time we vote for a politician...terrible odds...we seem to come up with snake eyes more often than not.
Last time my relatives visited, my mom made me drive her and my aunt to Dawson because of the 'old city' feel and mystique. But mainly it was for the gambling.
Please build a casino in Fairbanks so I don't have to make that nightmare trip again - Dawson is a hole - we could surpass their tourist draw easily. Our shows are even better - we went to ester gold camp and had a grand time - while the show in Dawson was a yawner.
As for the DUIs. Well we might even be able to hire more troopers with a little money coming out of the casinos. Maybe then we could have more than two or three patrolling our streets. I am sure that would make more people think about drinking and driving than they do now. It is kind of predictable how fast they seem to moving it through. Maybe the pass off. Hoping the people will kill it. Seems like it should be up to the people to do anything with our constitution, not to have lawmakers try to shove something in with out our ok. Remember that they are there by us and suppose to be working for us.
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