Jindal stops Iberville racino vote with veto

• By MICHELLE MILLHOLLON AND SARAH CHACKO
• Advocate Capitol News Bureau
• Published: Jul 3, 2008 - Page: 1A - UPDATED: 12:05 a.m.

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Gov. Bobby Jindal on Wednesday vetoed a bid to let voters in Iberville Parish decide whether to build a horse-racing track and slot machine complex in St. Gabriel.

The governor’s vetoes of House Bill 937 and Senate Bill 398 were expected.

Jindal made it clear early in the legislative session that he opposes the expansion of gambling.

Still, the bills’ sponsors expressed disappointment in the governor’s decision.

“I was kind of hoping that he had forgotten since he was all enthralled into the legislative pay raise,” said state Rep. Karen St. Germain, D-Pierre Part.

St. Germain and state Sen. Rob Marionneaux, D-Grosse Tete, both noted that Pinnacle Entertainment only needed the Metro Council’s approval for East Baton Rouge Parish voters to decide on another riverboat casino two months ago.

They said Iberville Parish voters should get the same opportunity.

“I can’t say that it surprises me,” Marionneaux said of the veto. “I don’t understand how on one hand you listen to the people and on the other, you keep them from a vote. I guess he’s conflicted again.”

Rather than push for a veto override, St. Germain said she probably will pursue changing the law that requires the Legislature to approve additional racetracks.

HB937 would have authorized a referendum on whether Iberville Parish voters wanted to allow horse racing, slot machines and parimutuel betting in their parish.

An $85 million facility, to be called St. Gabriel Downs, is on the drawing boards. It would be operated by St. Gabriel Downs LLC. The company is owned by William Trotter, who founded Evangeline Downs and operated it while it was in Carencro. He later sold Evangeline Downs, and it moved to Opelousas, where it reopened and operates as a racino, which is a horse racetrack with slot machines

Deborah Harkins, an attorney working with Trotter on the project, said Wednesday they were very disappointed to hear about the veto.

“It was just the right of the people to vote, and at all times the governor expressed his support of the horsemen,” Harkins said.