Resorts World NY Lobbyist Looms Large in Casino Acceleration Bill
- 07 Jun 2024
- Gambling News
The legislation that Sen. Joseph Addabbo (D-Queens) put forth last month to speed up the granting of three casino licenses in the New York City area is said to contain talking points from a lobbying company that represents Genting.
Located in Queens, Resorts World New York is managed by a Malaysian conglomerate. That location is close to Addabbo's district and, because to its extensive operating history in New York and history of providing the state with large tax receipts, is thought to be among the top candidates to secure one of the three downstate permits.
According to a recent New York Focus piece by Chris Bragg and Arabella Saunders, Addabbo's legislation to expedite the state's sluggish downstate casino license process was taken almost identically from a Word document. After looking through the Word document's information, the media outlet found that Ali Rimkunas was the author.
Genting pays the lobbying company Codro & Company $90,000 a month for various lobbying operations, of which Rimkunas is an associate. She declined to respond to New York Focus, but her work on gaming-related topics is confirmed on Codro's website.
Addabbo is pushing for a quicker approval process for casinos in New York
Decisions about the downstate casino permits may not be made until late 2025 or early 2026, as things stand. This is to the dismay of certain legislators and gaming corporations, including Addabbo, who wish to expedite the process in an attempt to capitalize on the revenue- and job-generating elements of downstate casinos.
Addaboo and Assemblyman Gary Pretlow (D-Mount Vernon) recently introduced bills last month that, if Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) signs into law, would require bidders for the casinos in the New York City area to submit applications by July 31. This might allow for approvals by mid-2025.
The state senator acknowledged that Codro offered some advice on the wording of his measure, but he claimed to New York Focus that the bill was written by his attorney.
"Never does anyone have a verbatim, rubber-stamp authority from the outside, no less to get their bill written, and that did not happen here,” he said in an interview with the reporters.
It is well known that he has supported Resorts World New York's bid to obtain one of the three downstate permits. If Genting is able to transform the facility into a casino hotel akin to one in Las Vegas, it will get at least $1 billion in annual taxes from Albany in addition to major expansion plans for the property.
Addabbo Bill Has Been Modified
Yesterday marked the end of New York's 2024 legislative session, unless Governor Kathy Hochul (D) called an emergency session. Addabbo and State Senator Kevin Parker (D-Brooklyn) presented an amendment earlier this week that would mandate regulators set an August 31 deadline for gaming businesses to submit their applications, with the goal of awarding the three licenses by the end of the next year.
Although it wouldn't significantly shorten the already harshly criticized deadline, it would provide certain bidders in riskier situations more time to solidify their offers or look for other options.
Particularly for Queens, Genting's push for casino acceleration legislation makes sense given the demise of a plan by Hard Rock International and New York Mets owner Steve Cohen to construct an integrated resort and entertainment area next to Citi Field.
