Williams to campaign against casino amendment
Youngstown Mayor Jay Williams
Youngstown’s mayor said he opposes gambling expansions.
COLUMBUS — Youngstown Mayor Jay Williams will be one of several co- chairmen to take across the state the message of a group opposed to a constitutional amendment that would allow casinos at specific sites in four Ohio cities.
Backers of the ballot issue, meanwhile, unveiled a new Web site, aimed at combating what they call false and misleading information about their casino plan.
The two sides are duking it out in a campaign that likely will cost tens of millions of dollars as they try to convince voters.
TruthPAC, a coalition of groups opposed to the ballot issue, appointed eight co-chairmen Tuesday for its statewide campaign against the casino plan.
If voters approve the plan, casinos would be placed in Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati and Toledo.
The group includes individuals who oppose gambling and is receiving contributions from the owners of the Mountaineer casino in West Virginia.
Community and elected leaders involved in the campaign include Williams; state Rep. Louis Blessing, a Republican from the Cincinnati area; state Sen. Teresa Fedor, a Democrat from Toledo; the Rev. E.T. Caviness, from the Greater Abyssinia Baptist Church in Cleveland; and Parma Mayor Dean DePiero.
They will be echoing TruthPAC’s concerns, including that the ballot issue will outlaw legal gaming conducted by churches and charitable groups, and that casino operators will be exempt from paying tax on wagers made with money as opposed to tickets, chips, tokens and electronic cards.
Williams said he opposes gambling expansions generally and not just because the current ballot issue excludes Youngstown as a selected casino site.
And he said he doesn’t believe claims by casino proponents about the potential casino plan’s economic impact.
“I have not found gambling to be the [economic force] that it has been made out to be by its proponents,” Williams said, adding later, “It doesn’t address the social issues and all the other things that come along with gambling.”
But Bob Tenebaum, spokesman for the casino backers, countered TruthPAC’s claims about the casino plan.
He said his group has issued a legal opinion stating that current gaming will not be outlawed if the casino issue is approved by voters, nor would casino operators allow cash wagering.
On the latter, he said, “Casino gaming companies, in this day and age, do not use cash gaming. And the primary reason is for audit purposes because both the casino operators, for business reasons, and the regulators, for regulatory reasons, obviously want the best ... audit trail. And cash is not that.”
A new Web site, www.copsforcasinos.com, has been established to counter TruthPAC’s claims. TruthPAC’s Web site is www.truthpac.org.