S. Dakota clergy denounce video gambling

Dennis Gale

Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2000 | 10:33 a.m.

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. -- The leaders of churches representing hundreds of thousands of South Dakotans teamed up to denounce the South Dakota video lottery.

"In many ways, this is historic," Robert Carlson, bishop of the Sioux Falls Catholic Diocese, said of the gathering of bishops and other clergy from his church, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, the United Methodist Church, the Episcopal Church, United Church of Christ and Baptist congregations.

Carlson is chairing the religious leaders who will work with a group called "Vote Yes on D!" that is trying to pass a constitutional amendment this fall to make video lottery illegal in South Dakota.

Clergy have a right to speak to their congregations on this issue, Carlson said.

"Day in and day out, we take the gospel of Jesus Christ and we help interpret it for the people as they live out their daily lives," he said. "In this particular case, we are dealing with something that affects the common good of all of the people of South Dakota. And the church has the right to be involved in that."

South Dakota Christians traditionally vote their conscience, the bishop said. "Our job is to help form that conscience."

One of the issues in the debate is how to replace more than $90 million a year that state government gets from the video lottery machines.

Michael Coyner of Fargo, N.D., bishop of the United Methodist Church of the Dakotas Conference, said South Dakota's state government is addicted to video lottery money.

People asking what the state will do without its $90 million "is like an addict saying, 'What are you going to do if you cut me off?' And we need to help the state realize this is bad business for state government to get hooked on this kind of gambling money," Coyner said.

Carlson said replacement revenue is important. "I have great faith in our Legislature, that has responded to challenges in the state for over a hundred years, that they'll be able to work on ways to find the revenue which is missing."

Larry Mann of Rapid City, campaign manager for Taxpayers Voting No on Amendment D, a group trying to preserve video lottery, said ending video lottery will mean higher taxes.

"If video lottery goes dark, you're going to pay higher taxes. Significantly higher taxes. There's just no way around it," Mann said.

He agreed with Carlson that the Legislature would find replacement funding. "The only problem is, where's it going to come from?" Mann said.

If it's replaced with a state income tax, it would be the highest in the nation, he said. And opponents' attempts to institute a temporary sales tax failed, Mann said.

Now, Mann said they have suggested using tobacco settlement money as replacement income. But that source might dry up, he said.

They also suggested using revenue from the proposed expansion of the Dakota, Minnesota and Eastern Railroad, Mann said, adding that the expansion has not even occurred yet.

"It's almost laughable to me, quite frankly," he said.

"They've run out of places to get revenue."

Carlson said he and Bishop Blase J. Cupich of the Rapid City Catholic Diocese will be asking their pastors to talk about video lottery and take part in voter registration drives.

"We hope that congregations are informed, firsthand if possible, by some of the tragic stories that have affected people in our state," Carlson said.

Mann said he wonders about the morality of eliminating an entire lawful industry, pulling the rug from under hundreds of businesses.

Only a small percentage of people have gambling problems, he said. "For 98 percent of people who play, it's simply a form of recreation."

It would be more practical to address the social problems caused by video lottery than pulling the plug, Mann said.

Carlson said families and individuals have lost homes, farms, ranches and retirement savings. Many people who embezzle, write bad checks and take part in other financial crimes are involved with video lottery, he added.

Mann said statistics about bankruptcies, divorce, suicide or crime that supposedly are related to video lottery aren't as bad as lottery opponents claim.

Other bishops at last week's news conference were Creighton Robertson of the Episcopal Diocese of South Dakota and Andrea DeGroot-Nesdahl of the ELCA's South Dakota Synod. The United Church of Christ and the Association of Christian Churches also were represented.