Gambling

Aside from the business suit he was wearing, which he joked was rented for the occasion, Sam Zell was never more himself than when he appeared at a New York lender conference in April 2007 to hawk his $8.2 billion buyout of Tribune Co. Slinging one-liners and a couple of his trademark expletives, the self-assured billionaire held a crowd of potential backers in thrall as he explained why he was willing to bet his reputation on a transaction that...

Del. Frank S. Turner, who has headed the House subcommittee that deals with gambling the past five years, will leave that post to become vice chairman of the full Ways & Means Committee, the Howard County Democrat confirmed Thursday. House Speaker Michael E. Busch is expected to make that announcement, along with other committee changes, Friday. Turner, a five-term veteran who played a central role in the House's passage of a landmark gambling expansion bill last summer, said the time had come to give up the chairmanship of the financial resources subcommittee.

Anne Arundel County Councilman John Grasso announced his candidacy for county executive two years ahead of the 2014 election in hopes that the extended campaign will give voters time to "build up a tab of likes and dislikes of John Grasso. " The first-term Republican said he declared this month in order to give voters ample opportunity to learn about him and to judge his actions while knowing he aspires to become county executive. "I want the people to have plenty of time," Grasso said.

Maryland's casinos will be allowed to open 24 hours a day under new regulations approved Thursday by the Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Commission that also relaxed limits on ATMs and lending to gamblers in the facilities. With the advent of full-scale casino gambling in Maryland after voters approved table games in the November election, the commission is updating the regulatory regime and relaxing some restrictions. The changes also added new rules, including some governing junkets that casinos provide to high-rolling gamblers.

The campaign that won last month's referendum on expanded gambling spent almost $48 million, its share of the most expensive political fight in Maryland's history. But it but didn't provide much of a direct cash infusion to the state's economy. "For Maryland Jobs and School – Vote Yes on 7," the ballot committee backed by pro-expansion casino companies led by MGM Resorts International, spent only 4 percent of that money on companies, nonprofits and individuals with Maryland addresses, according to its post-election report to the State Board of Elections.

Maryland's three casinos generated $43.1 million in November, about half of which went to the state's education trust fund. Maryland Live in Anne Arundel, owned by Baltimore developer David Cordish, continues to generate a majority of that revenue, as it has since opening in June. Its 4,750 slot machines brought in $34.4 million, or about $241.16 per machine each day. Hollywood Casino in Perryville brought in a total of $5.4 million from 1,500 machines ($120.48 per machine each day)

When the year started, the talk around Annapolis was that Gov. Martin O'Malley had already checked out. In the sixth year of his tenure, many believed he was already looking ahead to a national role and viewed his day job as something of a chore. But he came into this year's General Assembly session with a wide-ranging to-do list. He promised to back gay marriage, and his influence in pushing it through the legislature cannot be overlooked. But he also sought to set Maryland's longstanding budget problems on a path to resolution, to restrict development on septic systems that foul the Chesapeake Bay, to seek new funding for wastewater treatment plant upgrades and to win support for an ambitious plan to put wind turbines off the coast near Ocean City.

The NCAA Division II and III women's lacrosse committees have selected Stevenson as the new host of the 2013 Division II and Division III championships after they were moved from Montclair State (N.J.) because of a new state law allowing sports wagering on professional and college games. The semifinals for both divisions will be held Saturday, May 18 with the championship games May 19. "The Baltimore area is such a hotbed for lacrosse, so going to this area for our championships is such a natural fit," said Susan Hoffman, chairwoman of the Division III Women's Lacrosse Committee and associate athletic director and senior woman administrator at SUNY-Brockport.

Now that the governor's proposal to expand gambling in Maryland has passed at the ballot box, some state senators and delegates who backed the controversial measure are looking to collect. Call it casino capital. Those who stuck out their necks for Gov. Martin O'Malley and the General Assembly's presiding officers would like to bring home something to show for it. Baltimore wants to increase the school system's credit limit so it can renovate buildings, and the city's delegation in Annapolis is hoping to deliver.

Nine of the richest individuals in the United States live in Maryland, according to Forbes. Two of them do business in Baltimore, and quite prominently so (sometimes together): Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti and Under Armour founder Kevin Plank. There's a third man who is, at the very least, on the cusp of being a billionaire if he is not already. Peter Angelos, owner of one of Baltimore's most prominent law firms and its baseball team, has shrewdly built his fortune for decades.