Gambling news from http://www.kansascity.com/
To protect casino customers, it is imperative that the powerful Missouri Gaming Commission be politically independent.
The commission’s job is to make sure that the casinos conduct the games fairly, by the rules. It must also prevent criminal elements from infiltrating casino management.
Commissioners are selected by the governor and they, in turn, choose the commission’s executive director. Over its 13-year history, the five-member commission has stayed largely apolitical because governors looked outside of politics, often to persons with law enforcement backgrounds, for their appointees. That’s the best practice.
The casino industry has lots of money to spend on influencing elected officials. Casino regulators shouldn’t be put in a position where they might be pressured to favor someone who is a financial contributor to the governor or to his political party.
Unfortunately, the no-politics rule in casino regulation may be changing. Two of Gov. Matt Blunt’s commission appointees have backgrounds in Republican politics and contributed to the governor’s 2004 campaign.
Also, the new executive director is former St. Louis County Executive Gene McNary. He’s long been involved in GOP politics but has no background in casino regulation and is ill prepared to follow Kevin Mullally, who resigned last spring.
As an aide to the late Sen. Harry Wiggins, Mullally helped to write the law creating the Gaming Commission and early on joined its staff. Under his direction, the commission gained a national reputation as tough but fair.
Blunt appointee Noel Shull is headed toward a conflict with state law over his legal ability to serve.
State law says that no member of the commission can be an elected official. That law exists to keep politics off the commission.
Shull, a Kansas City businessman, is running for the elected position of Clay County presiding commissioner. He also has served as a member of the Clay County Republican Central Committee, to which he has sought election again. However, last week county election officials ruled that Shull didn’t meet the residency requirements for the committee position.
If Shull is elected to public office, he should step down from the commission.
Another Blunt appointee, Sam Hais, a St. Louis lawyer, is a big contributor to the Republican Governors Association, which gave nearly $2.6 million to help Missouri Republicans in 2004.
Some state government jobs are too important to be viewed by governors as patronage plums. Regulation of the gambling industry is one of those jobs. Blunt is headed in the wrong direction.
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