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Maine Groups Want Part in Review Process

AUGUSTA, Maine – As reported by the Maine Press Herald: "Penn National Gaming hopes to learn Tuesday if it will get a license to provide harness racing and slot machines in Bangor. But recent racino developments have raised doubts about whether the Harness Racing Commission will make a final decision at that time. The commission is supposed to act on the license application Tuesday, but four groups that oppose giving Penn National a conditional license recently asked the commission to let them participate in the review process. The four are Casinos No! and the Christian Civic League of Maine, which oppose slots; and the Penobscot and Passamaquoddy Indian tribes, which want to set up their own racino in Bangor.

"The pending application from Penn National is for harness racing, but that license also would allow Penn National to install slot machines in Bangor under terms of the racino law voters passed in November. That law allows slots at commercial race tracks that won local approval for them by Dec. 31 of last year.

"…The latest bid to participate in the licensing review came from the Christian Civic League of Maine, which filed its request last week. Michael Heath, the league's executive director, said his organization should be allowed to take part in the case in large part because it has a long history of opposing gambling.

"If the commission allows any of the newcomers to participate in the licensing process, they probably will try to torpedo or delay Penn National's license bid…"

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