Auditor named, SEC filing delayed

Friday, May 17, 2002 | 11 a.m.

Mikohn Gaming Corp. of Las Vegas today named BDO Seidman LLP as its new principal independent auditor, replacing Arthur Andersen LLP.

Andersen, tarnished by the Enron scandal, was fired by Mikohn on April 29.

Mikohn, a casino industry supplier, also notified the Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday it will file its quarterly 10-Q disclosure form late for the period ending March 31.

The 10-Q "cannot be filed within the prescribed time period due to recent focus on the selection and appointment of the company's new accountant," Mikohn said.

Mikohn stock was down 50 cents or 8 percent this morning on the news, trading at $5.60.

On Wednesday, casino companies MGM MIRAGE and Mandalay Resort Group and casino supplier Alliance Gaming Corp. all said they were dropping Andersen and hiring Deloitte & Touche. Harrah's Entertainment Inc. made the same switch two weeks ago.

Senate rejects bill to expand horse racing

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Legislation intended to expand the horse racing industry in Missouri failed by a nose in the Senate on Wednesday.

At issue is the number of days that Missouri horse tracks may offer simulcast betting on races telecast from other states.

Under current law, a track may offer simulcast betting only for as many days as it holds live horse races. The restriction is blamed for the failure of any track to survive in the state since voters approved pari-mutuel wagering in 1984.

Betting on simulcast races would be allowed year-round under the measure defeated Wednesday.

Opponents said Missouri already has enough gambling in the form of riverboat casinos on the Missouri and Mississippi rivers.

"The only thing they bring to Missouri is the taxes we get from them," said Sen. Wayne Goode, D-St. Louis. "They do hurt aspects of the economy. They do cause people to have serious family problems. It's pretty hard to justify."