Promise of a special session to address expanded gaming in Maryland fell short last week, prompting organized labor to rally Monday in favor of further talks.
On Thursday, a work group of lawmakers and advisers announced it could not reach consensus over a special session that could have put into motion the necessary requirements for a sixth casino site in Maryland that would have been built in Prince George's County. The special session could have also examined lowering the current 67 percent tax rate on slot machine revenues, which House members of the work group opposed.
On Monday, union leaders demanded a special session to expand gaming in the state, and they sent every member of the General Assembly a strongly worded letter that takes a jab at the governor's economic policies citing job losses. In part, the union leaders wrote, "It's incomprehensible that lawmakers would give up the opportunity to create more than 8,000 jobs."
Organized labor framed its argument for expanded gaming in Maryland around job creation and additional revenue for the state.
"To be blunt, our members are disappointed, frustrated at the legislators -- the people we send down here to make the decision," said Vance Ayres, executive secretary and treasurer of the Washington, D.C., Building Trades Council.
The unions' letter also stated, in part, "After seeing our state listed among the nations' leaders in job losses two months in a row, we find it incomprehensible that our elected leaders would allow the opportunity to create more than 8,000 jobs in Prince George's County slip past us."
"No matter what our views on this gaming issue, we should at least let the voters decide," said Abiola Afolayan, political director at the Hospitality Workers Union.
Differences between the House and Senate over gambling on the last day of the regular session led to a breakdown on passing a budget.
The proposed legislation would let voters decide whether to allow a casino in Prince George's County. The measure would have also put table games in all the existing casino locations.
According a new poll by Opinion Works Research and Communications, 83 percent of registered voters want the issue decided by a referendum question on the November ballot, while 55 percent of voters surveyed indicated support for adding table games, shifting machine ownership from the state to the operators, reducing the tax rate on slots revenues by 10 percent and approving a casino site in Prince George's County.
troy miracle andy whitfield kennedy demi moore roy oswalt kevin martin
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