WHY ISN'T THE INQUIRY LIGHT FLASHING?

6/16

As reported today in a photo finish the state and city worked out their issues and saved OTB.

Anyone following this could have predicted this outcome as the state was not going to give up on this cash cow no matter how poorly it has been run.

Not that we would wish unemployment on anyone but do you really think that it is fair that the starting salaries of the tellers at NYC OTB are higher then the staring salaries of teachers, cops and firefighters.

NYC OTB clerks make 50% more than clerks at other OTB's and at one point it's labor costs were 75% of its total costs.

Managers of OTB parlors make more then principals in the public school system, it just doesn't seem fair.

Since its inception OTB has been mismanaged and its contribution to NYC has been minimal.

So many fingers in the pie from the state to the NYRA its no wonder that they can't make any money.

It's not surprising that NYC could manage to screw up a bookie operation.

What is surprising is that this comes as a surprise to anyone.

Over ten years ago a study by Morgan Stanley found that for each dollar collected from bettors, New York's OTB spent more on salaries and benefits than other OTBs in the state or private companies that run offtrack betting operations elsewhere.

Back in 1995 Dr. Savas, director of the Privatization Research Organization at Baruch College, stated OTB was "overstaffed, overpaid, and overburdened with expensive leases on its parlors," "A lot of these long-term leases were given out to politically influential people, and the corporation is stuck with them. The overpayment comes from relatively high base salaries for workers, from sweetheart deals with unions for overtime pay, and with a bloated management structure that was rife with political patronage."

Below are some quotes from Mayor Bloomberg about OTB;

"I have always had my reservations about city government being involved in gambling. But it is entirely wrong for the the city to lose taxpayer money funding such a questionable endeavor"

"Years of state legislative schemes that favored racing interests over NYC OTB, at the expense of essential city services, have forced the city into a financially untenable situation in which city taxpayers are, in effect, asked to subsidized the state racing industry.

What we find amusing is that these quotes are seven months old having been made in November of 2007.

Seven months later and we just roll over for the state.

But the mayor had to know the problem with OTB existed well before last November

One only has to compare these two press releases from the mayor's office to see that there has been a problem for quite sometime

OTB TO EXCEED $1 BILLION IN WAGERING IN FISCAL YEAR 2000 (6/28/2000)

http://www.nyc.gov/html/om/html/2000a/pr248-00.html


MAYOR BLOOMBERG ADDRESSES OFF TRACK BETTING BOARD BEFORE VOTE TO IMPLEMENT CLOSURE PLAN (2/19/2008)

http://www.nyc.gov/portal/site/nycgov/menuitem.c0935b9a57bb4ef3daf2f1c701c789a0/index.jsp?pageID=mayor_press_release&catID=1194&doc_name=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nyc.gov%2Fhtml%2Fom%2Fhtml%2F2008a%2Fpr056-08.html&cc=unused1978&rc=1194&ndi=1

If a jockey gave a horse such a bad ride the inquiry light would certainly be flashing.

But when it comes to government oversight of OTB or with all its agencies for that matter it is business as usual.

No oversight, no accountability, political patronage (past presidents have included Allie Sherman of NY Giant fame and one of Guliani's cousins) and the list goes on and on.

And they wonder why they can't turn a profit.

At the end of the race the only ones who lose are the NYC residents who were supposed to benefit.

But I guess I am just beating a dead horse.