So that New Yorkers who may be thinking the downstate retail casino licensee selection process is “tainted” with “questions of impropriety” are reassured that it’s honest and fair, state Sen. Joseph P. Addabbo Jr. told Bonus he’ll introduce a 2025 bill to codify the selection process deadlines.
Addabbo, R-Woodhaven, said in an interview with Bonus on Aug. 29:
There has been no movement whatsoever.
A spokesman for Gov. Kathleen C. Hochul said she will consider the bill if the House and Senate approve it.
Addabbo Wants Solid New York Casino License Process
Addabbo noted that Hochul didn’t sign SB9673 into law after the New York State Legislature approved the bill on June 7 that called for expedited deadlines.
At that time, a board appointed by gaming regulators to pick three downstate commercial casino licensees hadn’t progressed since Oct. 6, 2023.
In 2022, the state budget got the license process going, and, in 2023, the New York State Gaming Commission (NYSGC) appointed the siting board.
Addabbo told Bonus:
This governor is willing to wait years upon years upon years.
He said he’d like Hochul to sign into law the updated deadlines the New York State Gaming Facility Location Board (NYSGFLB) published on June 27, 2024.
Addabbo told Bonus:
You need to codify — statutorily — deadlines.
Deadlines Ready for Addabbo’s 2025 Bill
Those updated deadlines importantly outline a date for potential casino licensees to formally apply for one of the three licenses. The amended board deadlines also specify when the board needs to pick the winners that it will recommend to the commission for licensure. Those due dates, respectively, are:
- June 27, 2025, for licensee applications, with a $1 million fee for each application
- Dec. 31, 2025, for licensee selection
However, the board allowed itself leeway to extend the selection process into March 2026.
So, it could take more than a year for New York to begin receiving the $3 billion Addabbo expects to see from license bids. Then construction may last for years.
Addabbo is concerned the board won’t adhere to its own deadlines without codification:
We’ve seen them blow past deadlines.
Addabbo Is Hearing License Process Questions
When Addabbo spoke on a panel during the Racing and Gaming Conference — held from August 12 to 14 at The Saratoga Hilton — he received questions about the downstate retail casino license process.
The primary question he receives “every moment there’s inactivity” is:
Why is it moving so slow?
In 2014, a similar siting board began the licensee selection process for upstate commercial casinos in March. The board made its recommendations to the gaming regulator in December.
The next question Addabbo received surprised him. Why hadn’t he asked Hochul to sign his 2024 bill expediting the casino licensee selection process?
Why would I need to beg the governor to do that?
As for the bill he plans to introduce in 2025, Bonus asked Hochul’s office, “Will Gov. Hochul sign into law a 2025 bill codifying the gaming regulator’s declared deadlines for the downstate casino license process?”
John Lindsay, deputy communications director with the New York State Executive Chamber, told Bonus:
Governor Hochul will review any legislation that passes both houses of the legislature.
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