Despite denials to the contrary, the Mayor of Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania has declared that the stand-alone slot machine licence for the city has been ‘fixed’ and that the news media is not doing its job in disclosing it. The comments were made at a Press Club of Western Pennsylvania luncheon yesterday but the Mayor, Tom Murphy, apparently refused to elaborate. A spokesman for the state Gaming Control Board maintains that there is no ‘fix’ and that all applications for the Pittsburgh licence will be evaluated and a decision made in the best interests of the commonwealth.

Tom Murphy is of the opinion that the decision should be in the best interests of the city. He sees the next two months as being the best chance the city has to leverage concessions from a bidder in exchange for the city’s support. The Mayor opposes casino gambling in Pennsylvania and feels that keeping control of local zoning is critical so that Pittsburgh can influence the design and impact of the future slots parlour. The deadline for licence applications is 28 December and it is anticipated that at least six bids will be made.

At present the licensing of slot machine distributors in Pennsylvania is causing problems at the Gaming Control Board, with no consensus on whether the state should be divided into separate regions. The regulation for licensing middlemen to supply the slots operations was made with the intention of encouraging local businesses for minorities or women. Mayor Murphy also had something to say about that. According to him, three slot machine suppliers already had the inside track and none of them is owned by a company belonging to an ethnic minority or a woman. (E-10.28.05)

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