Louisiana taxing authority schedules first meeting

Wednesday, Feb. 2, 2000 | 3:14 a.m.

The legislation that created the district specifies that the board must oversee the licensing and tax collections for the new track.

Allen Bares, attorney for Evangeline, said the track will make no moves until the board is in place. Under the legislation, Bares said, the track must wait until the board meets to begin negotiating a contract with the Louisiana Gaming Control Board.

The track, which will be called a "Racino," will be the first built specifically to combine horse racing and gambling into one casino.

The idea of slots has drawn controversy since the Legislature authorized the machines in 1997. The racing industry says it needs the money to compete with casino gambling. Gambling critics say the slot machine parlors will be nothing more than casinos.

In 1997, voters in Bossier and St. Landry parishes approved slots for tracks. In addition, voters in St. Landry Parish approved parimutuel wagering, which will enable Evangeline Downs to build a new track a few miles up the highway from its current location in Lafayette Parish, which voted out video poker.

According to state law, Evangeline can operate a slots parlor in St. Landry Parish for up to a year before opening the new track.

In 1998, the Legislature failed to muster the two-thirds vote required to impose a state tax on slot proceeds, one of the requirements before the machines could be turned on.

However, the 1999 Legislature approved local taxing boards that will remit slot taxes to the state - thus getting around the two-thirds requirement. Gov. Mike Foster allowed the bill to become law without his signature.