Macon County was not first in Alabama to pass a constitutional amendment allowing bingo gambling. Actually it was dead last.
But once the amendment was voted into law Nov. 4, 2003, it changed bingo as most Alabamians knew it and created a for-profit Las Vegas-style gambling business that many have tried to imitate around the state.
Now the county’s sole casino, VictoryLand in Shorter, is fighting to keep its empire intact while Gov. Bob Riley and his Task Force on Illegal Gambling are closing in ready to issue the business a final death blow.
Initially Alabama House Bill (HB) 660, which would become Macon County’s bingo amendment, was introduced to legislators in 2003 looking almost identical to the 17 other laws allowing charitable bingo across the state.
Gambling opponents and supporters worked together to make the bill suitable for both sides. But in what some gambling opponents call a “sneaky” last-minute move, the bill’s sponsor, former Rep. Johnny Ford, of Tuskegee, submitted a new bill. Only a few words were changed, yet the bill legalized a new form of electronic gambling in the state.
“We were doing it like traditional types of bingo where you operated it on your own premises … not paying rent for the premises, not paying anybody a consulting fee to run the game, not paying anybody any expenses and limited on the amount of prizes that could be paid,” Birmingham attorney Eric Johnston said. “Those were three things taken out by Ford, and he told everyone it was the same bill. … Before it could be given to anyone to look at, they voted on it and passed it. Then, within minutes, we found out it was a different bill.”
“I am the representative who wrote and originated HB 660 (which passed the state Legislature on June 11, 2003), the bill that actually brought electronic bingo to Alabama,” Ford told The Alabama Baptist during the 2010 legislative session.
“The original intent was just to satisfy the senior citizens, but at the same time, I realized VictoryLand was on the verge of closing and losing jobs,” he said.
“The bill I introduced said bingo could be played in any form,” Ford explained. “I did my due diligence.”
While representing Alabama at an event in San Francisco in July 2003, Ford said IGT (International Game Technology) introduced him to the machines being labeled electronic bingo.
“IGT is one of the sponsors of the mayor’s conference (an event in Las Vegas Ford had attended previously as mayor of Tuskegee),” he said. “Jerome Young (who supplied video machines at VictoryLand at that time) was in charge of minority affairs and had a session at the conference.
“He had a conference on gaming and how it impacted communities,” Ford said, noting it was Young and Chuck Brook of IGT who were at the IGT booth in San Francisco.
While Ford said he first saw the “bingo machine” the month after the the Macon County bingo legislation passed, he had been involved with the company and one its representatives prior to the legislation passing.
“I’m responsible for changing the gaming industry in Alabama forever,” Ford said.
The bill allowed nonprofit organizations to let other businesses operate the games on their behalf and pay consulting fees for services related to the games’ operation. It also did not specify what legislative body was responsible for setting cash or prize limits associated with the games.
Johnston said these changes to bingo operations took the state’s gambling business to the next level.
“Because of the bill that Johnny Ford got passed, they didn’t have any limitations on it,” he said. “VictoryLand … had a big facility already … so they pushed everything to the limit from the number of machines to what they were doing. They were using more sophisticated machines — slot machines — and others began to follow suit. … They set the standard so to speak.”
Dan Ireland, who served as executive director of Alabama Citizens Action Program during that time, agreed and called VictoryLand’s setup “major league” compared to other “sandlot”-type gambling operations around the state.
“The only thing about it is that it went in under the guise of being charity bingo, and the charity part is almost negligible,” Ireland said. “From all I have read, the biggest part of the money is going to the (dog) track and not to charity or for the benefit of county functions.”
Recently a federal court ruling found that VictoryLand and owner Milton McGregor “profited” more than $162 million in 2008 but gave less than 1 percent of that to charities. Still county and charity leaders have expressed satisfaction with the amount they received, according to a Tuskegee News article.
And some claim their organizations’ existence depends on VictoryLand.
John Anderson, chair of Macon County’s Share and Care Committee, which provides free food to the needy, reportedly said, “The $25,000 we get as our share for charity bingo is basically our entire budget.” Others had similar stories since VictoryLand also gives money to “nine volunteer fire departments, several schools, nutrition centers, Tuskegee-Macon County Head Start and the Tuskegee Area Chamber of Commerce.” According to the article, taxes from VictoryLand provide more than one-third of the county’s budget.
But some question whether that is enough money to cover the additional services needed as a result of the increased traffic, social problems and other issues arising from a gambling facility the size of VictoryLand. In 2009, Shorter Mayor Willie Mae Powell’s plea to Alabama legislators indicated it is not.
While Powell said she supported a bill legalizing VictoryLand’s gambling activities, she asked state lawmakers to consider allowing “host municipalities” to tax the facilities in their jurisdiction. With only five police officers at the time, she said VictoryLand was a facility “greater than we can maintain and cover.” She added, “We are trying to maintain all of this coming into our town. We need money to take care of the people that we have been elected to take care of.”
Fearing a task force raid, VictoryLand voluntarily closed its doors Aug. 9 even though McGregor reportedly maintains his machines are legal bingo machines. He blames Riley for intruding in county business.
“Consider the fact the constitutional amendment that authorized charity bingo in Macon County went through the Alabama Legislature, was pre-cleared by the Department of Justice and approved by 76 percent of voters in Macon County,” McGregor told the Tuskegee News. “Yet after seven years of operation, Riley with his signature vetoes all of those actions at the expense of Macon County and the state. Nothing like that has ever happened in the history of this state. His actions (resulting in the shutting down of the ‘electronic bingo’ operation at VictoryLand) have cost thousands of jobs and millions of dollars in taxes.”
Riley and his team say the machines are illegal slots and McGregor knows it.
“These attacks are just another example of the contemptible lies the gambling interests regurgitate over and over again,” Riley said. “It truly is despicable.”
Jeff Emerson, Riley’s communications director, agreed.
“If One-Percent McGregor really, honestly believed his slot machines were legal, he would keep his casino open,” Emerson said. “Then he could argue his side in a court of law, but that’s the last thing One-Percent McGregor wants because he knows his slot machines are illegal. … The Alabama Supreme Court has ruled unanimously, members of both parties, and has been very clear. … One-Percent McGregor tells people the opposite because he wants to continue breaking the law.”
During the war of words between VictoryLand’s supporters and opponents, the Alabama Supreme Court even came under fire when a Montgomery newspaper printed an article correctly detailing a forthcoming ruling on VictoryLand, which included the author’s name. This information is confidential until the high court releases its opinions.
As rumors circulated suggesting improper communications between the court and Riley’s office, the justices responded with a news release denying the accusations.
“Information concerning the assignment of cases to members of this court and the anticipated date of release of such cases is highly confidential,” the release stated. “Any unauthorized disclosure of such information is detrimental to the integrity of the judicial system. The court is conducting an internal investigation of the source or sources of such unauthorized disclosure or disclosures.”
Retired Supreme Court Justice J. Gorman Houston Jr. is leading the investigation.
Meanwhile a plywood wall now separates VictoryLand’s gambling machines from its pari-mutuel dog and horse racing business. The task force said if the electronic games are reopened to expect a raid of the facility. (Jennifer Davis Rash contributed)
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