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Hawaii Governor: Voters Should Decide Gambling Issue25 May 2001HONOLULU, Hawaii—May 25, 2001 –As reported by the Associated Press: "Gov. Ben Cayetano said Thursday that the issue of legalizing gambling in Hawaii "should be put to the people" in the form of a constitutional amendment on next year's ballot. "Hawaii is one of only three states without legalized gambling. "…Cayetano said. "If the people say 'no' then that settles the issue forever. If they say 'yes,' then we should make the most of it." "…`That might be the better way to resolve this issue rather than the legislators struggle with it,' Cayetano said. "…Hawaii's lawmakers have been considering various legalized gambling proposals for decades, including land-based casinos, shipboard casinos, horse and dog racing, charity bingo and a state lottery. "All have been rejected. "…Earlier this year officials from Sun International briefed legislative leaders on their proposal for an $800 million resort-casino on one of the vacant properties at Ko Olina, earmarking gambling tax revenues for college scholarships. "Also making a pitch for an exclusive license was a Detroit-based investment group, Holomua Hawaii, which proposed two gambling casinos on Oahu. "…When the Sun proposal became public in January, Cayetano said he was open to the idea of an exclusive casino license with proceeds going to education, but would not necessarily support it. "He said he remains opposed to wide open gambling operations like those in Las Vegas…" |