Texas slots debate under way

April Castro

Tuesday, April 27, 2004 | 8:57 a.m.

AUSTIN, Texas -- Allowing video slots gambling at horse and dog racing tracks would create rural jobs and boost Texas' position in the national horse racing scene, Texas Agriculture Commissioner Susan Combs testified Monday.

Both Rep. Ron Wilson, D-Houston, and Rep. Jim Pitts, R-Waxahachie, laid out separate proposals to a House education committee that would allow the state to tax video gambling at horse and dog tracks to help pay for public education. Republican Gov. Rick Perry detailed a similar proposal as part of larger package earlier this month.

Lawmakers, called back into session last week by Perry, are looking for ways to replace decreased property taxes in the state's public education budget.

While some have argued that video gambling is not a stable source of revenue, Combs told the committee that the proposal would be a huge economic boon to the state's equine industry.

A percentage of the revenue would go to the purses under one of the proposals, which in turn would attract more horses to Texas.

She estimated that more than 30,000 jobs could be created in rural areas in ancillary industries such as feed production, sale of horse trailers and pen manufacturing.

Combs said that as agriculture commissioner she has sought the creation of more stable jobs in rural areas that could support regional economies despite drought or downturns in the cattle market. Video lottery terminals could facilitate that sort of job growth by stimulating the state's equine industry, she said.

Wilson estimated his proposal would garner as much as $600 million in its first year and grow to exceed $1 billion in later years.

Bob Kaminski, former chairman of Lone Star Park in Grand Prairie, said that if the video gambling proposal is not adopted "you will see the quality of racing in Texas continue to diminish and you will see our investment in agriculture in Texas continue to decline."

Committee member Rep. Vilma Luna questioned Kaminski about the prospect of gambling expanding to table games.

"I wish we could do this a different way," said Luna, a Corpus Christi Democrat.

Robert Spellings, president of the Texas Thoroughbred Association, testified that the state's struggling racing industry cannot attract top horses with lower purse sizes.

"We have never been competitive in Texas in terms of having the best purses," he said.

One Houston-based horse trainer testified to the committee that she trains many Texas horses out of state because their owners are lured to higher purses in other states. She said about one-third of her business is out of state.

Several members of the House, including Republican Rep. Linda Harper-Brown of Irving, say they are firmly opposed to any expansion of gambling, including video lottery terminals.

"Family values are extremely important to me and all Republicans and I don't know how we can be talking about family values and be talking about something as destructive as casino gambling," Harper-Brown said.

The House committee began looking at formulas for distributing funds to schools over the weekend and on Monday turned the focus toward revenue options. The full House and Senate are scheduled to meet again today.