Gaming briefs for July 3, 2003

Thursday, July 3, 2003 | 11:27 a.m.

Housing of casino workers generates controversy

NEW LONDON, Conn. -- City Manager Richard Brown claims Mitchell College is operating an illegal hotel by housing casino workers.

The workers are Polish college students who were recruited by Mohegan Sun. The casino asked the college to provide rooms because of a severe shortage of affordable rental housing in the area.

About 35 students stay at the college at any one time. They pay for their room and board.

They must leave campus by July 24 when Mitchell's freshmen orientation begins.

"We do not see their visit to campus as a problem since foreign students in the past have resided at Mitchell and have enrolled in the college's English as a Second Language summer program," college President Mary Ellen Jukoski said.

Brown said the Polish students are not taking classes, and said the college is taking advantage of its tax-exempt status to make extra money.

"My issue is not where they are working," he said. "It is blatantly a commercial activity."

Mitchell, like many colleges, often houses groups in dorms during the summer. The school also allows its students to stay on campus if they are taking summer classes or pursuing internships.

Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods Resort Casino recruited about 400 students from Poland to work this summer, primarily as food and beverage department workers and coin handlers.

Newspaper seeks casino audit records

MILWAUKEE -- Casino financial audits which the state collects from all 11 Wisconsin tribes should be made public, a newspaper said in a letter to Attorney General Peg Lautenschlager.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel initially sought the audits May 5 in a request to the state Department of Administration under the state Open Records Act, which generally requires documents held by state or local governments to be open to the public.

That request was denied in part because state-tribal gambling compacts have confidentiality provisions in which the state promises to keep casino financial data secret, and the newspaper Wednesday asked Lautenschlager to reverse the decision.

The tribes have contended releasing such information could provide an advantage to competitors.

The Journal Sentinel argues the public has a legitimate interest in knowing full financial details, in part to better assess the merits of newly negotiated casino gambling agreements between the state and tribes.