Many Say Jobs Are at Stake
By Christy Goodman
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, September 18, 2008
A recently divorced mother and a 69-year-old cancer survivor caring for a husband with Alzheimer's disease were among those who told Calvert County officials this week they'll be out of a job if licensing fees for video gaming machines are increased.
The majority of the more than 100 people who filled the commissioner's meeting room Tuesday were employees of Trader's Seafood, Steak and Ale restaurant or the entertainment division of the Rod N' Reel Restaurant and Chesapeake Beach Resort and Spa.
Both businesses are facing potentially hefty county licensing fees for their casino-style bingo machines, known as pseudo slots, that are legal in Chesapeake Beach.
County commissioners are considering raising the annual license fee for video gaming machines from $5,000 to as much as $10,000. In addition, they proposed a flat fee of up to $10,000 per machine.
"I may lose my job based on each one of your decisions," said a tearful Terri Hays, a 10-year employee of Chesapeake Amusements, which runs the 200-machine game room above the Rod N' Reel.
"It is not just my job; it is my career. It is my livelihood. It is my food on my table for me and my son. It is the clothes on my back. It is the medicine I have to buy for my son," Hays said.
Rohan Soysal, chief operating officer for Chesapeake Beach Resort and Spa, which oversees Chesapeake Amusements, told the board he would have to lay off more than 75 employees, ages 15 to 70, and cut benefits for others if the fees are imposed.
Earlier in the year, the Maryland General Assembly increased the taxes on the net revenue from the Chesapeake Beach machines. The legislature also enacted legislation that will make the county's slot machines illegal July 1.
"I think we just went through this," Gary Luckett, owner of Trader's Seafood, said of the legislature's tax increase. Trader's has about 70 machines.
"It devastates everyone around this room," said Luckett, who presented a petition opposing the county's measure with 500 signatures. "Our economy is already struggling as it is."
In November, Maryland voters will decide in a referendum whether to allow slots at five locations in the state. Chesapeake Beach is not among them. County officials are hoping that if voters approve slots elsewhere, state officials ultimately will agree to let Chesapeake Beach keep theirs beyond July.
Commissioners did not respond to questions from the employees and others who testified at Tuesday's hearing, but they commented after the lengthy hearing.
"I'm really annoyed that this got posed as a question of jobs," said Commissioner Susan Shaw (R-Huntingtown), who opposes gambling.
Larry Lamson, an attorney representing Chesapeake Amusements, warned commissioners, "I don't think you have the authority to do what you want to do."
County attorney Emanuel Demedis disagreed. Commissioner Barbara A. Stinnett (D-At large) agreed with Lamson, saying the county's fee increases would "regulate a business out of business."
"It is a fact, people will lose jobs," Stinnett said.
Commissioners unanimously voted to keep the public comment period on the fee increases open for two weeks until after the November referendum on slots. Board President Wilson H. Parran (D-Huntingtown) said it was unlikely commissioners would make a final decision until after the 2009 Maryland General Assembly adjourns in April.
View all comments that have been posted about this article.