is aren't all the organizations in one way or another accountable to the State? IN following this simplistic way of thinking, how can the State fight with itself over monies that all wind up in the same place?


http://drf.com/news/article/109927.html

Industry News | Posted 1/6/2010, 10:41 am
NYRA objects to OTB bankruptcy petition
By Matt Hegarty
The New York Racing Association and the New York Thoroughbred Horsemen's Associations are seeking to dismiss a bankruptcy petition by New York City Off-Track Betting Corp., according to objections the two groups have filed with the bankruptcy court.

The objections signal that NYRA and its horsemen are preparing for a drawn-out battle with New York City OTB as the company seeks to reorganize under a little-used section of the bankruptcy code, Chapter 9, which is reserved for municipalities. New York City OTB, which is owned by the state, filed for Chapter 9 bankruptcy on Dec. 3, listing NYRA as it second-largest creditor with a debt of $14.7 million.

In its objection, NYRA states that the court should dismiss the bankruptcy filing for several reasons, including its contention that the offtrack betting corporation did not obtain approval from the state legislature to file for Chapter 9 bankruptcy.

In addition, NYRA contends in the objection that OTB "failed to demonstrate in good faith over a plan of adjustment with its creditors" and that OTB is using the bankruptcy filing to put pressure on the state legislature to reduce its statutory obligations to the racing industry and other parties that have a share in the company's revenues.

The horsemen's association made substantially the same objections by filing as a joinder to NYRA's petition.

New York City OTB was taken over by the state from the city of New York in 2008 after New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg threatened to close the operation. New York City OTB is the largest bet-taker in the U.S., with approximately $1 billion in handle, and it provides about $100 million a year from its handle to the Thoroughbred and Standardbred racing industries through a complex mix of statutory obligations.

Sandy Frucher, New York City OTB's chairman, did not immediately return a phone call on Wednesday, but he has said in the past that the company cannot survive unless the legislature amends the statute governing its distributions. The reorganization plan will also likely seek the shuttering of the vast majority of the company's 60-plus parlors in New York's five boroughs, and entail a 50 percent reduction in the company's 1,400-employee workforce, Frucher has said.

Graft is the common denominator, and no one wants to take a smaller piece of the pie. There is plenty to go around, but they all want TOO big a bite.