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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 17, 2008
CONTACT:
Carol Maravic
(717) 787-6725
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The Barden Casino Failure Indicates the Need for Extensive Change of Pennsylvania's Government Processes and Culture

At first glance, the recent reports on the financial condition of Don Barden would seem to only relate to gaming and to the sigh of relief that it appears Pittsburgh has dodged a bullet.  As I read these reports that again establish that the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board backed a financially unqualified applicant, I do not get an "I told you so" sense of satisfaction.  Rather, I see a lack of understanding of some public servants of what it means to be a "steward" of the public's money and of their trust.

As a government agency, it was incumbent on the Gaming Control Board to protect the public's financial interests in its award of the Pittsburgh casino project.  Rather than do so, the Board put at risk the entire project by awarding it to an applicant that lacked the financial where-with-all. Then, when Mr. Barden defaulted on the license as was inevitable, the Board did not hold anyone accountable. Instead, it gave away the $50 million license fee and other financial sanctions to which the Commonwealth was entitled.  It was only the taxpayer's good luck that the Board had a Philadelphia casino operator to substitute for Mr. Barden, to mitigate even further financial loss from the Board's poor decision-making.  And that good fortune in itself is questionable, in light of the statute's intended prohibition against multiple casino ownership.

This type of conduct is particularly troubling in light of the dire financial circumstances Pennsylvania may find itself in over the next several years.  Perhaps at no other time in our history has it been as imperative to eliminate waste in state government and to change a careless culture that fails to treat taxpayer money as a precious, and limited, resource.

As we gear up to address the coming budget shortfall,  I believe we need to look farther than the tax and spend portion of the equation, and must finally make substantial government reforms.  Many reforms that have been proposed go beyond mere openness, and would significantly change the culture of our state government which too often fails to put the interests of the public above all others.  Those reforms can and should include things such as elimination of discretionary no-bid contracts that are ripe for "pinstripe patronage;" prohibiting expenditures of taxpayer money on lobbyists; reforming the make-up and processes of state agencies (like the Gaming Control Board) to require qualified membership and clear priorities; seriously review and evaluate the process of continuing to selectively fund certain institutions through the non-preferred budget process; requiring any and all state grants to be based on merit, with consequences for failure to perform; and complete elimination of certain wasteful state agencies.