Gov. Ted Strickland ordered Ohio Lottery Director Mike Dolan to come up with rules and a system to put up to 17,500 video lottery slot machines at the tracks.
Roberts said lottery officials are scrambling to figure out what needs to be done and when. The Strickland administration expects the VLTs to be operating in permanent facilities or temporary tents by May 2010.
State Sen. Bill Seitz, R-Cincinnati, is a longtime supporter of bringing gambling to Ohio, but he voted against the budget bill, in part because he believes there aren’t enough guidelines in the statute to make sure the VLTs are done right.
He said he and two other lawmakers expressed their concerns, but “we were politely told to go to hell.”
The bill is silent on whether there should be more stringent political contribution limits for racetrack owners or vendors that make VLTs.
Strickland spokeswoman Amanda Wurst said the governor won’t accept campaign contributions from track owners and would be willing to sign a bill that limits political donations from them to other officeholders and candidates.
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