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New Jersey Governor Chris Christie announced Wednesday the creation of the New Jersey Gaming, Sports and Entertainment Advisory Commission, a body set up to establish a state-wide approach to gaming which is hoped will help stem the steady decline in gaming revenues for the state.
Governor Christie established the Commission yesterday following the recent publication of the Transition Subcommittee reports on gaming, entertainment and authorities.
The report found Atlantic City casinos burdened by grossly uncompetitive regulatory expenses, a municipal government failing in its supporting role of the industry, the Meadowlands and Monmouth racetracks losing a projected $22 million in 2010, and a Sports Authority struggling to manage those problems.
“We can no longer let Atlantic City wither in the face of competition, have our arenas and stadiums go underutilised, or have a Sports Authority that is unable to maximise our entertainment investment and resources,” said Christie.
“Previous efforts have been piecemeal, weak and failed to look at all the problems in a whole and comprehensive way. This will be a blueprint to guide our policy in fixing our sports and entertainment infrastructure in New Jersey, to make all its parts self-sustaining, attractive to wider audiences and revenue positive for the long term. But the Advisory Commission will also be working with my administration in real-time, to move quickly to solve critical contractual and other issues we confront in the short term.”
Square in Christie’s sight is New Jersey’s horse racing industry which currently receives $30 million annually in subsidies from Atlantic City casinos, and which the Governor wants to see become self sufficient. Another major concern for Christie is the increasing availability of gambling options in neighbouring states such as Delaware and Pennsylvania which means less visitors to the traditional East Coast gaming centre of Atlantic City.
The Advisory Commission, which will serve without compensation, will be dissolved no later than June 30th of this year, the deadline for submitting its final report and policy recommendations to the Governor.
Commission members include amongst others; Jon Hanson, former chairman of the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority (NJSEA); Wes Lang, MD of private equity firm WML Partners; NJ Chamber of Commerce CEO Debra DiLorenzo and Robert Holmes, law professor at Rutgers School of Law.
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