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US Gambling Market Saturated, Yet Casinos Keep on Coming

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This Oct. 26, 2011 photo shows the Showboat Casino Hotel and its House of Blues nightclub in Atlantic City, N.J. A union official said on June 26, 2014 that a top executive of Showboat's parent company, Caesars Entertainment, revealed plans to issue notices to the casinos employees the next day warning that the Showboat could be shut down in 60 days. (AP Photo/Wayne Parry)

This Oct. 26, 2011 photo shows the Showboat Casino Hotel and its House of Blues nightclub in Atlantic City, N.J. (AP Photo/Wayne Parry)

WAYNE PARRY, Associated Press

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) — The casino market in the northeastern United States is saturated, yet that’s not stopping some states from approving gambling legislation and companies from building new gambling halls.

That’s the consensus of participants at a major casino conference in Atlantic City.

Eugene Johnson, of Spectrum Gaming Group, says by the end of this year, there will be 60 casinos in the northeast. That figure will grow to 65 by 2018, according to his colleague, Joe Weinert.

“There’s not a politician in the land who is going to choose a tax increase when gaming looks so good on paper,” said Wendy Hamilton, general manager of Philadelphia’s SugarHouse casino. “We have to avoid the siren song. There’s not a zip code in the region that doesn’t have four or five (gambling) options within an hour.”

Asked if casino closings outside New Jersey are likely, she said nothing appears imminent, but “of course it’s going to happen” if expansion continues at its current pace.

“Pennsylvania doesn’t care what happens to New Jersey, and New York doesn’t care what happens to Pennsylvania,” she said. “It just can’t go on forever. There’s a finite amount of gaming revenue out there. We are in a very volatile time and we’re in a frenzy of gaming expansion. It needs to stop.”

Ed Sutor, president of Dover Downs casino in Delaware, said the entire mid-Atlantic region saw decreasing revenue in the first quarter of this year.

“New Jersey, Delaware, Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Maryland — the entire market is down,” he said. “That is, friends, saturation. You’re just moving money around. You bring in a new operator and the money just moves around and the entire market doesn’t go up.”

Sutor noted his state is considering adding three more casinos, which he said “makes no sense.”

Atlantic City has lost half its casino revenue and thousands of jobs to competition from Pennsylvania, which is now under pressure from casinos in Ohio and Maryland, said William Ryan Jr. chairman of the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board.

“We in Pennsylvania know the competition we now confront will always be there, and the days of double digit growth in that area are probably gone,” he said.

More casinos are planned soon for Philadelphia, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Maryland and New York. Hamilton noted that a planned second Philadelphia casino is being appealed to the state Supreme Court.

“There’s a lot of competition right now,” she said. “If you look at the entire mid-Atlantic region, you’ve got people really hammering each other to win people over. There’s not $400 million in new money in that market. There’s just not. We’re keeping a wary eye on what’s coming down the road; it’s a scary situation.”

New Jersey is considering allowing a casino in the Meadowlands, and possibly a second one in Jersey City, both just outside New York City.

“We’re at a point where we’re just moving money around,” said Chris Brown, a New Jersey state senator from near Atlantic City, who opposes a plan to extend casino gambling to other parts of the state. “All you’re doing is cannibalizing the market you already have.”

Lou Kirven, an executive with New York’s Empire City casino, said adding two northern New Jersey casinos to a market also planning for three new southern New York casinos would be “one too many. We have saturation.”

Bill Hayles, vice president and general manager of Pennsylvania’s Hollywood casino at Penn National Race Course, said Maryland’s casinos have cut into his business.

“We’re feeling it from the Baltimore region, seeing some erosion in our business,” he said. “The sad part is before they open, you spend all your time trying to figure out how to right-size your own property.”

___

Wayne Parry can be reached at http://twitter.com/WayneParryAC

Copyright 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Antonio‌ ‌Ray‌ ‌Harvey‌

Air Quality Board Rejects Two Rules Written to Ban Gas Water Heaters and Furnaces

The proposal would have affected 17 million residents in Southern California, requiring businesses, homeowners, and renters to convert to electric units. “We’ve gone through six months, and we’ve made a decision today,” said SCAQMD board member Carlos Rodriguez. “It’s time to move forward with what’s next on our policy agenda.”

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Shutterstock.

By Antonio‌ ‌Ray‌ ‌Harvey‌
California‌ ‌Black‌ ‌Media‌ 

Two proposed rules to eliminate the usage of gas water heaters and furnaces by the South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) in Southern California were rejected by the Governing Board on June 6.

Energy policy analysts say the board’s decision has broader implications for the state.

With a 7-5 vote, the board decided not to amend Rules 1111 and 1121 at the meeting held in Diamond Bar in L.A. County.

The proposal would have affected 17 million residents in Southern California, requiring businesses, homeowners, and renters to convert to electric units.

“We’ve gone through six months, and we’ve made a decision today,” said SCAQMD board member Carlos Rodriguez. “It’s time to move forward with what’s next on our policy agenda.”

The AQMD governing board is a 13-member body responsible for setting air quality policies and regulations within the South Coast Air Basin, which covers areas in four counties: Riverside County, Orange County, San Bernardino County and parts of Los Angeles County.

The board is made up of representatives from various elected offices within the region, along with members who are appointed by the Governor, Speaker of the Assembly, and Senate Rules Committee.

Holly J. Mitchell, who serves as a County Supervisor for the Second District of Los Angeles County, is a SCAQMD board member. She supported the amendments, but respected the board’s final decision, stating it was a “compromise.”

“In my policymaking experience, if you can come up with amended language that everyone finds some fault with, you’ve probably threaded the needle as best as you can,” Mitchell said before the vote. “What I am not okay with is serving on AQMD is making no decision. Why be here? We have a responsibility to do all that we can to get us on a path to cleaner air.”

The rules proposed by AQMD, Rule 1111 and Rule 1121, aim to reduce nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions from natural gas-fired furnaces and water heaters.

Rule 1111 and Rule 1121 were designed to control air pollution, particularly emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOx).

Two days before the Governing Board’s vote, gubernatorial candidate Antonio Villaraigosa asked SCAQMD to reject the two rules.

Villaraigosa expressed his concerns during a Zoom call with the Cost of Living Council, a Southern California organization that also opposes the rules. Villaraigosa said the regulations are difficult to understand.

“Let me be clear, I’ve been a big supporter of AQMD over the decades. I have been a believer and a fighter on the issue of climate change my entire life,” Villaraigosa said. “But there is no question that what is going on now just doesn’t make sense. We are engaging in regulations that are put on the backs of working families, small businesses, and the middle class, and we don’t have the grid for all this.”

Rules 1111 and 1121 would also establish manufacturer requirements for the sale of space and water heating units that meet low-NOx and zero-NOx emission standards that change over time, according to SCAQMD.

The requirements also include a mitigation fee for NOx-emitting units, with an option to pay a higher mitigation fee if manufacturers sell more low-NOx water heating and space units.

Proponents of the proposed rules say the fees are designed to incentivize actions that reduce emissions.

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Activism

Congress Says Yes to Rep. Simon’s Disability Hiring and Small Biz Support Bill

“As the first congenitally blind person to serve in Congress, I am incredibly honored to lead and excited to celebrate the House passage of the ‘ThinkDIFFERENTLY About Disability Employment Act,’” said Simon.

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U.S. Rep. Lateefah Simon (D-CA-12). File photo.
U.S. Rep. Lateefah Simon (D-CA-12). File photo.

By Bo Tefu, California Black Media

The House of Representatives unanimously passed the “ThinkDIFFERENTLY About Disability Employment Act” on June 3, marking a major win for U.S. Rep. Lateefah Simon (D-CA-12) and co-sponsor Rep. Pete Stauber (R-MN-08) in their bipartisan effort to promote inclusive hiring and boost small business accessibility.

The legislation establishes a federal partnership between the Small Business Administration (SBA) and the National Council on Disability to help small businesses across the U.S. hire more individuals with disabilities and provide resources for disabled entrepreneurs.

“As the first congenitally blind person to serve in Congress, I am incredibly honored to lead and excited to celebrate the House passage of the ‘ThinkDIFFERENTLY About Disability Employment Act,’” said Simon.

“Small businesses are the lifeblood of cities, making them accessible for all will maximize local economic activity and broaden the job market to everyone who is seeking to contribute to their communities,” she continued. “Investments in business and talent in our communities shouldn’t be limited to just those who are not disabled. Full stop, period.”

Since taking office in January 2025, Simon has introduced six bills. The House has approved two of them: this measure and the “Assisting Small Businesses, Not Fraudsters Act.”

Simon, a lifelong disability rights advocate and former BART board member, has focused her career on improving access, from public transit to the job market.

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Activism

Over 500 Join Interfaith Rally in Solidarity with Los Angeles Resistance to Trump Invasion

Over 500 people attended the Tuesday evening rally in Oakland, which was held simultaneously with a prayer vigil in Los Angeles, where rabbis, pastors, Muslim faith leaders, and indigenous spiritual leaders gathered to pray and speak out about the federal government’s abuses of power.

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Hundreds gathered at Fruitvale Plaza in Oakland on June 10 in solidarity with immigrants and opposed to Trump’s use of armed federal agents in Los Angeles. Photo by Beth LaBerge/KQED.
Hundreds gathered at Fruitvale Plaza in Oakland on June 10 in solidarity with immigrants and opposed to Trump’s use of armed federal agents in Los Angeles. Photo by Beth LaBerge/KQED.

By Post Staff

n response to last week’s “invasion” of Los Angeles by armed and masked federal agents, East Bay faith leaders and community members, joined by Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee and Alameda County Supervisor Nikki Fortunato Bas, held an Interfaith vigil Tuesday evening at Oakland’s Fruitvale Plaza in support of Los Angeles residents and immigrant communities across the country.

Over 500 people attended the Tuesday evening rally in Oakland, which was held simultaneously with a prayer vigil in Los Angeles, where rabbis, pastors, Muslim faith leaders, and indigenous spiritual leaders gathered to pray and speak out about the federal government’s abuses of power.

Earlier on the same day, hundreds of protesters at San Francisco and Concord immigration courts shut down the courts after masked, plainclothes federal ICE agents detained people seeking asylum attending their court hearings.

“Too many families in Los Angeles torn apart by this invasion still do not have access to a lawyer — and that’s not an accident. We, the people, the community, are here to say, ‘Enough!’ We must keep organizing and demand that ICE and our government respect the rights of all people and uphold the principle of due process,” said Andrés Pomart with Trabajadores Unidos Workers United.

“We know that when we organize, we win. That’s why our communities – Black, Brown, and working-class – are coming together to support each other in solidarity. Together, as immigrant communities and as a united working class, we will not be divided nor intimidated nor live in fear,” Pomart said.

“Immigrant communities — yes, our immigrant communities — are the heartbeat of Oakland, enriching our neighborhoods with diverse cultures, languages and experience, and deserve the quality of life that every human being deserves. An attack on one of us is an attack on all of us.  “Your city remains committed to protecting our immigrant neighbors,” said Mayor Lee.

“When Trump’s armed goons come for our families and communities, when they trample on our shared values of freedom and opportunity, when they make a mockery of our rights to due process, we are called to step up for our neighbors,” said Supervisor Bas. “This is not just an immigration story. It’s a story about who we are — and how we respond when our neighbors are under attack and when the president of the United States abuses his powers. When they come for one of us, they come for all of us.”

Said Kampala Taiz-Rancifer, the Oakland teachers’ union president, “It is time for us to say, ‘Not in our city.’ We will stop, we will block, we will drive out ICE. We will protect our classrooms. We will protect our streets. We will protect our homes. Together, we rise for the dignity of our families and our right to live without fear.”

“I feel that the president and the current administration is grossly overstepping and abusing their power,” Rabbi Chai Levy, speaking to KQED. “I feel that, as a religious person, communities of faith need to show up and stand in solidarity with immigrants who are threatened and afraid. “It’s important to show up as people of conscience and morality and say that we’re against what our government is doing.”

The vigil was hosted by Bay Resistance, and co-sponsoring organizations included the Alameda Labor Council, Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment (ACCE), Faith in Action East Bay, Restore Oakland, East Bay Alliance for a Sustainable Economy (EBASE), Ella Baker Center for Human Rights, Oakland Rising, Faith Alliance for a Moral Economy, SEIU Local 1021, Communities United for Restorative Youth Justice (CURYJ), SEIU United Service Workers West, Jewish Voice for Peace Bay Area, Jobs with Justice San Francisco, Interfaith Movement for Human Integrity, Urban Peace Movement, and Trabajadores Unidos Workers United.

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