Pari-mutuels form two PACs to fight Florida amendment

July 25, 2018 3:11 AM
  • Nick Sortal, CDC Gaming Reports
July 25, 2018 3:11 AM
  • Nick Sortal, CDC Gaming Reports

So now there’s some competition: two racetrack casino operators have each created an organization to fight an amendment that would require any gambling expansion in Florida to be approved by the voters.

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“Voter Control of Gambling in Florida” is on the ballot for Nov. 6. The measure would remove control of future gambling expansions from the hands of legislators. The effort has been backed by Disney (trying to protect Orlando’s convention business) and the Seminole Tribe of Florida (trying to fight off hotel-resort casinos and other competitors). In April, Disney and the Seminoles each donated $5 million to the campaign that is working to pass the amendment.

Polls have shown the level of approval for the amendment to be well over the necessary 60 percent, and until recently there was no organized opposition.  That changed this month when Isadore “Izzy” Havenick, vice president at Magic City Casino in Miami, and Dan Adkins, president of the Big Easy Casino in Hallandale Beach, created political action committees. Havenick was first, with “Vote NO on 3,” on July 5. Adkins followed on July 18 with “Citizens for the Truth About Amendment 3.”

“Now that the Seminoles and Disney are attacking our business and working together to try and put us out, we have to fight and we have to explain to voters in the state of Florida why this is bad amendment,” Havenick said Monday. His PAC took its time in setting up “because we wanted to get all of our ducks in a row.”

Magic City is also trying to open a jai-alai fronton and card room in downtown Miami, which has brought some ire in recent days.

“Because we realize we have a huge target on our backs, we have to be very methodical,” Havenick added.

It’s well known that operators in the pari-mutuel industry in Florida tend to go their own way, so it’s no surprise that more than one PAC has appeared. Most of those in the industry have had at least one battle with another operator during legislative sessions in the state capital of Tallahassee. But in this case Havenick has no issue with Adkins and his separate group.

“I guess you could call us brothers in arms,” Havenick said. “We’re going to work in concert.”

Havenick argues that the state amendment would negate any local control.

“Why should Orlando tell Miami-Dade County what it can and can’t do,” he said. “And the amendment would be letting the legislators off the job. The truth of the matter is, as the most regulated business in the state, by the state, the legislature and the state thereby should be the ones making our rules.”

The Seminoles pay about $250 million annually to the state for exclusive rights to operate casinos in Tampa and Immokalee, in southwest Florida. The Seminole casino in that area competes with Naples-Fort Myers Greyhound Racing & Poker, operated by the Havenick family. The money paid by the Seminoles also is for exclusive rights to blackjack and other table games in South Florida. Racetrack casinos can offer slots only in Miami-Dade and Broward counties.

Havenick (correctly) fears the amendment would prevent the racetrack casinos from easily adding blackjack. But the long-term impact could be far greater than that, with internet gambling and sports betting possibly on the horizon for Florida – and already offered in a few states today. The proposed amendment covers all Class III gaming, which includes sports betting, and would logically cover internet gaming as well. What the amendment explicitly excludes is any gambling on tribal lands in Florida; that’s up to the state (the governor and legislature) to negotiate compacts, and those compacts could include internet gaming and/or sports betting.

John Sowinski, the chair of Voters in Charge, told Florida Politics in an email that “it appears that some people would rather buy gambling permits with political contributions and lobbyists than allow voters to have a say.” The amendment “simply gives power to Florida voters, and takes it away from Tallahassee politicians and lobbyists,” Sowinski continued. “It’s no surprise that those who spend millions bankrolling politicians would oppose Amendment 3.”

Havenick acknowledges there’ a lot more work to be done to stop Amendment 3 from passing. “I’d like to think it’s winnable,” he said. “But they’ve already put in more money than I’ve ever seen in my life. And they’re prepared to put in more.”