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Rhode Island Approves Casino Study27 March 2002PROVIDENCE, Rhode Island – As reported by the Kent County Times: "After a marathon hearing so packed with spectators that many were forced to watch the proceedings on television in the hallway, the House Finance Committee voted 16 to 1 Tuesday to form a special commission to study the full range of issues presented by the possibility of opening the state to casino gambling. "The effect of the vote, many believe, is to delay a referendum vote on any casino proposal for at least one year. "Chairman Gordon Fox, who proposed the resolution to form the commission, promised the crowded room at the start of the more than six-hour long hearing, `you are going to see one of the greatest exercises in government tonight.' "…Fox said that before a casino is built voters of Rhode Island will have a vote on the matter, but once the commission has done its work, `they will know exactly what they are voting on when they vote.' "…Fox said a commission is also necessary to establish a regulatory structure and a tax structure, both of which he said need to be in place before the Narragansetts or Boyd Gaming, the tribe's financial backer, can know whether they want to go through with the project. "…Chief Sachem Matthew Thomas once again sounded the theme that "`to delay is to deny,' the Narragansetts a chance to go to voters with a casino proposal and that to deny a referendum would be unfair to the tribe, to Rhode Island voters and taxpayers in need of revenue. "But perhaps bowing to the inevitability that the commission would be formed, representatives of the Narragansett Indian tribe and its financial backer, Boyd Gaming, subtly changed their message Tuesday from outright opposition to the formation of the commission to saying the commission could do its work and a proposal for a November referendum could go on at the same time…" |