The majority party-sponsored bill proposes a casino with 2,000 video slot machines to be operated by off-track betting offices in Nassau and Suffolk counties. This could solidify significant Republican support for Gov. Andrew Cuomo's statewide casino proposal.
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The casino would be built on the border of Nassau and Suffolk, WCBS 880's Sophia Hall reported.
A "huge" Long Island casino project is underway.
Nassau County Executive Ed Mangano said in a statement that he supports a regional facility to subsidize education and keep property taxes down.
Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone said that millions of dollars are being lost every day due to the lack of gaming opportunities on Long Island. He supports the proposed construction of a large casino.
Cuomo and congressional leaders are negotiating a plan to authorize three Las Vegas-style casinos. Cuomo has publicly proposed three casinos in the upstate.
Nassau County OTB President and CEO Joseph Cairo told the Associated Press, "This is huge. The Senate has indicated to me that it is part of the overall (casino) package discussion."
Cairo, who is also the first vice chairman of the County Republican Committee, said he has spoken with Senate Republican Leader Dean Skelos (Nassau County) about the proposal. He said they talked about a proposal to build a video slot casino on the bestcasinos.gr line to attract Long Island's 3 million residents. He also said that another version would create two facilities, each with 1,000 video slot machines.
'I think Senator Cairo is in favor of it conceptually,' he said.
Asked about the proposal's role in the closed-door casino negotiations, Kelly Cummings, spokeswoman for Senator Skelos, replied: 'We will continue to discuss all aspects of gaming and casinos during the remaining five weeks of the session.
The bill, introduced by Suffolk County Democratic Rep. Steven Englebright, states that the facility would include "outstanding consumer amenities and conveniences to encourage and attract regional, state, and national tourists and other visitors." He did not respond to a request for comment.
The Senate bill is sponsored by Republican Senator Phil Boyle of Long Island.
Cuomo spokesman Matt Wing denied that the proposal is part of private negotiations the governor is having with legislative leaders.
He said, "Nassau and Suffolk have been pushing this proposal for several years. It is not part of casino gaming negotiations or discussions."
In Albany, closed-door "leadership meetings" between the governor and legislative leaders are held in secret. Major proposals are often not announced until an agreement is reached and brought to a vote in the legislature without a public hearing.
The proposal is contrary to Cuomo's public demands that the Gambling Commission select the vendors, that operators, not the legislature, be involved in site selection, and that privately operated casinos be limited to the northern part of the state.
Video slot machine casinos operated by OTB in Nassau and Suffolk would allow the legislature to keep patrons employed at the facilities.
Most of the nine existing "racino" centers, which have video slot machines but no table games, are growing rapidly. These operators claim to be Cuomo's top candidates to be privately run casinos he proposes for upstate and, five years later, for the New York City area.
One of Albany's most powerful lobbyists, former Sen. Alphonse D'Amato lobbies on OTB and state casino issues in Nassau and Suffolk counties. He could not be reached for comment on the proposal.
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