Agudath Israel of America voiced its deep disappointment over
the New York State Legislature's approval last Thursday of a
bill that will expand legal gambling in the state by
permitting new casinos in the Catskill Mountains and western
New York.
New York's state constitution has not allowed gambling for
more than a century, but various exceptions have been made
over the years, including betting on horse races, charity
bingo, the state lottery in 1966 and even casino gambling for
charities that was passed in a referendum in 1975.
In the days preceding the vote, when it became apparent that
the measure was rapidly gaining support as a result of
widespread economic concerns for the state, the Orthodox
Jewish organization asked Governor George E. Pataki, State
Senate Majority Leader Joseph L. Bruno and Assembly Speaker
Sheldon Silver to reconsider their support for the expansion
of legalized gambling in New York. The Orthodox Jewish
organization's opposition to the proposal was based on what
its executive vice president for government and public
affairs, Chaim Dovid Zwiebel, called "a moral foundation."
"As Orthodox Jews," he explained, "we see casino gambling,
and many of the social trappings that often accompany it, as
entirely incompatible with the values we hold dear."
But Mr. Zwiebel also added a more immediate concern. "Our
community operates a number of summer camp programs in the
Catskills, and includes many families who spend summers in
`the mountains' or live there year-round. We are concerned
about the impact casino gambling will have on their quality
of life."
When the legislation is signed into law, it will expand the
number of Indian-run casinos in the state from two to as many
as eight, introduce video lottery terminal at horse racing
tracks, and let New Yorkers buy tickets to the multi-state
Powerball lottery.
The Republican-controlled Senate approved the bill 52-8 and
the Democratic-run Assembly passed the measure 92-41. Both
Governor Pataki and Majority Leader Bruno said they do not
like gambling but felt forced by the fiscal fallout of the
World Trade Center disaster to back the unprecedented
expansion of gambling in the state.
In the wake of the vote, opponents threatened to challenge
the measure in court. Agudath Israel's Mr. Zwiebel said that
his organization would consider participating in such a
challenge.
