Allowing Casino gambling here is Ohio is not a simple issue to me. A great deal of the time, the Casinos win, that is what they are in business for.

In Ohio, as well as many other areas, many people just don't have the money to waste on gambling. Their families need the money more than the Casinos. Some people that will have the ease of getting to the casinos will become gambling addicts. These are normal concerns about having casinos in the state.

In some of the areas where casinos have cropped up, there have become employment problems, drug problems and prostitution. None of these are good for the people of Ohio.

From reading Issue 3 I found in the 4 cities proposed for the casinos, there will be only one casino in each of the cities. So how is the process of who will own these casinos be handled? There is listed a $50 million fees for the casino license and a requirement of having $250 million to build these casinos, but who gets to decide who the casino operators will be? Most state licenses and "right to operate exclusively" go out to competitive biding, so why doesn't this issue go out for competitive bid? The state could make a lot more money doing this bid and then more money could go to the schools.

If we are going to have casinos in our state, we need to make them competitive and having only one in each of the proposed cities doesn't sound that competitive to me.

So I say Vote NO on this version of the bill to allow casinos in Ohio, it appears that who ever owns these casinos wants to have no competition, the casino owner just want your money.

Jerry Smith, PhD.
Somerton, Ohio
"A Terrorist Free Community"