Gambling talk mostly smoke, no fire

Questions likely to doom expansion efforts this year SPRINGFIELD (AP) — Money talks at the state Capitol, but not loud enough to drown out the complaints, questions and demands raised by effort to expand gambling in Illinois. With both the state and city of Chicago facing tight budgets that could benefit from an influx of casino money, gambling was back on the table as the Legislature returned for its fall veto session this week. And with it came a long list of obstacles — regional and partisan rivalries, competing business interests, ideological conflicts. Even the most ardent gambling enthusiasts see little chance of lawmakers expanding gambling in Illinois this year. "Even though there's a lot of talk, it's mostly smoke and no fire," said Rep. Lou Lang, a Skokie Democrat who heads the House's gambling committee. But no one is ready to declare gambling expansion officially dead, not with the Legislature's long history of sudden changes. Facing a tight budget and reluctant to raise taxes, lawmakers have discussed gambling expansion as a quick source of cash for several years. The latest plan floated by Senate President Emil Jones, D-Chicago, is not much different from one that sputtered earlier this year. It calls for three new casinos — in Chicago, its south suburbs and Waukegan — and would add thousands of slot machines at the existing riverboat casinos to help generate hundreds of millions of dollars for struggling local and state coffers. But what's included in the package, how it's put together and who's involved in the talks is a volatile formula. Existing riverboat casinos want to expand but don't want competition from new casinos or slot machines at horse racing tracks. The racing industry wants a subsidy or the right to operate slot machines. Chicago Mayor Richard Daley is fighting hard for a huge land-based casino owned by the city. Republicans oppose city ownership, fearing potential for corruption, and also want a casino in Rockford. Democrats can't agree on what should be included and where all the revenues should go. "We're nowhere close," said Sen. Donne Trotter of Chicago. Top Democratic leaders can't even decide how to proceed. Daley and Jones want to push forward, but Gov. Rod Blagojevich will agree only to consider the idea and House Speaker Michael Madigan is demanding that Blagojevich spell out exactly what he will and won't accept. "It's just fascinating organized chaos," said Sen. Steve Rauschenberger, an Elgin Republican who says any serious effort to pass gambling expansion would include Republicans. "I don't think there's any chance." Some key Democrats agree. "You're going to have to have Republicans," Lang said. The issue has been especially touchy since the spring 2003 session, when Blagojevich toyed with the idea of backing an expansion but ended up rejecting the idea and publicly scolding lawmakers. Now legislators, particularly Madigan, want to know exactly where Blagojevich stands before they will take action. But Deputy Governor Bradley Tusk says Blagojevich won't take the lead. "He'll have an open mind and take a look at it," Tusk said. "We'll see what they do." Gambling advocates still hold out hope that everything will come together. Some say lawmakers could extend their fall session, expected to wrap up next week, to work on the issue, or possibly pass something when they return in January. And if that doesn't happen, they are confident money will talk again next spring and put gambling back on the agenda. "They're going to need to start looking for more revenue sources fairly early on during the session," said Tom Swoik, executive director of the Illinois Casino Gaming Association, which represents riverboat owners. "The state could get a bunch of money real quick."