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Casino Sparring Clash Goes To Court
Message was posted: 04:12 Jul 29th, 2006

User: Sandcastles Rank: Casino Gold: 15110CG Contributor rating: 81480 Status: Offline

The fight to put a casino question on Nebraska's November ballot continues. The sparring is being done in court. Nebraska Attorney General Jon Bruning fired the latest shot on Friday when he asked a Lancaster County District Court to weigh-in against the idea. Bruning filed a brief asking the court to deny a request to place two gambling initiatives up for a vote. Bruning was responding to a lawsuit filed this month challenging Secretary of State John Gale's decision to not allow the question on the ballot. Greg Lemon, of The Committee for Better Schools and More Jobs in Nebraska Inc., contends in his lawsuit that the casino initiative would not violate the constitution's limit on submitting similar ballot proposals more than once in three years. Nebraskans voted down two casino plans in November 2004 -- one touted by Las Vegas casino interests and the other by the Legislature. Even though the details of the new proposal differ from past ones, Gale considered it more of the same. "The constitution is clear. Gambling interests cannot put another round of casino initiatives on the ballot this year. The latest initiatives are essentially the same as the 2004 initiatives. They expand gambling -- period," Bruning said Friday. The resubmission clause of the constitution bars petition measures that are the same in "essential substance" from being submitted to voters more than once every three years, Bruning said. A hearing is scheduled for August 3. The Committee for Better Schools and More Jobs in Nebraska Inc., sponsored a package of petitions that would allow one casino in each of the state's three congressional districts. It would earmark funds for K-12 education, horse racing and treatment of compulsive gamblers, plus create a board to regulate and license casinos in the state. Gambling with the Good Life, an organization that opposes casino gambling in Nebraska, plans to file a friend of the court brief in support of Gale and Bruning, executive director Pat Loontjer said. "We are proud to support Mr. Gale and Mr. Bruning as they stand up and defend our great state from these outsiders who have shown no respect for our laws or our quality of life," Loontjer said. "All these gambling interests care about is how much money they can take out of Nebraska. They don't care how many families and businesses are destroyed in the process." WOWT