Posted on 08/17/2006 1:07:58 PM PDT by calcowgirl
SACRAMENTO — The Schwarzenegger administration faced a dilemma today over a bill — stemming from a clash between two Bay Area card rooms — that would let local governments allow much higher-stakes in games like Texas Hold'em at 90 card clubs statewide.
If Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who is running for re-election, signs the measure. he pleases small business and cities that get a cut of their revenue, but goes against the wishes of 9,000 California churches that say he would be deregulating card rooms across California.
The California Coalition Against Gambling Expansion that represents the churches is pleading with Schwarzenegger to veto the bill, maintain a moratorium on expansion of card-room operations and continue local voter control over the issue.
Schwarzenegger's office cited its policy of not indicating in advance what he intends to do with legislation. In the past, the governor has allowed California to join multi-state Mega Millions lotto and has bolstered Indian gaming pacts.
The measure, which won final legislative approval after lawmakers returned this week, would permit cities and counties to eliminate card-room wagering limits, without voters' approval, allowing players to bet as much as they want.
Supporters say the proposal is a move toward uniformity and better local control while foes see it as expansion of gambling and virtual deregulation of card clubs, from which cities and counties draw millions of dollars annually.
The author of SB 1198, state Sen. Dean Florez, D-Fresno, whose committee oversees gambling, said the intent of the bill is to allow local elected officials "to make decisions based on what's best for their particular region."
The state Attorney General's Office, which regulates gambling, and other supporters say the measure also would halt inconsistencies in the setting of gaming limits, which essentially have been locked in place since a 1996 statewide moratorium on expansion of card rooms.
Some local governments, such as San Bruno, have no limits, in violation of the law, according to Lockyer. Others operate under established caps, such as in Colma, where a card room pushed for the new legislation. The card rooms, located south of San Francisco, triggered the controversy.
"We believe the measure will inject needed uniformity into what is now a mishmash of local regulatory authority over wagering limits," said Tom Dresslar, a spokesman for Attorney General Bill Lockyer. "It will help us do our law enforcement job and not expand gambling in California."
But anti-gambling groups said the bill would fuel California's skyrocketing gaming problems and essentially remove controls voters now have over card rooms.
"The law (under the existing expansion moratorium) requires card clubs to seek the vote of the people before lifting their existing wagering limits by more than 25 percent," said Fred Jones, an attorney for the California Coalition Against Gambling Expansion. "This bill would wholly remove that voter requirement."
"Any argument that this bill preserves or enhances local control is completely false, given that ultimate local control — that is, the will of the people — is totally undermined by this measure," he said.
In a letter to Schwarzenegger on Wednesday, Jones said his anti-gaming expansion group is "deeply concerned about the ill effects of gambling on California citizens and communities, both in social and economic terms."
"Local ordinances that currently limit the amount a patron can wager on a single hand were the result of political pressures of the surrounding communities," said Jones. "Affected voters in the region should be protected from such a drastic increase in wagering opportunities in their communities without their direct consent."
"All card rooms ... will, under this bill, be able to allow their patrons to lose all the cash they can get their hands on in a single hand, which, given the high stakes of Texas Hold'em, popularized by TV, is quite conceivable," he said.
I guess it's just too bad they can't dragoon 'the children' into this. That'd stop the rooms dead in their tracks.
Maybe a Democrat can find some kid that lost his college fund due to his dad bluffing on a pair of 2's.
Heck, I could find that from the last game I attended (it wasn't me). Then again, the same guy had the same pair of 2's in a later hand and the third 2 showed up in the river. Won a real big pot and got it all back.
Still, that IS two concepts together, usually one too many for a Democrat to understand or bother waiting to hear about.
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