Gaming board position explained
Your Sept. 20 story on the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board staff background investigations (“Gaming Board Chair Defends Hiring Process”) excludes a key piece of my recent testimony to the state Legislature: The Gaming Control Board this spring hired outside contractors with extensive background investigation experience for the highest levels of government (FBI, Secret Service, etc.) to conduct these investigations, because the Pennsylvania State Police fell behind in completing its investigations on our staff – in some cases as much as nine months. To be fair, one important reason the state police had fallen behind was that troopers were concentrating on completing separate background investigations on gaming suppliers, who are mandated by Act 71 to distribute gambling machines to the gaming industry in Pennsylvania.
This was no fault of the PSP; it was simply too much work and too little time. It should also be noted that all of these investigations have been completed, thus avoiding an unnecessary delay in the delivery of property-tax relief, new jobs and a revived horse-racing industry to the people of Pennsylvania.
The Gaming Control Board moved quickly and decisively to keep the arrival of gaming in the Commonwealth on track. We have now completed over 1,200 investigations, licensed 17 suppliers and are on schedule to award casino operator licenses.
Keep gaming moving forward, or not? That was the choice the Gaming Control Board faced this spring. I think we made the right decision to keep the process moving, and now that you have the facts as provided above, I believe you will agree with our decision.
Tad Decker, chairman
Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board
Harrisburg