BUSINESS
By Chris Korman, The Baltimore Sun | December 13, 2012
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.
SPORTS
By Jeff Barker and The Baltimore Sun | December 6, 2012
Maryland said today that it has formed a commission that, among other tasks, will recommend which of seven athletic teams - eliminated in budget cuts last June 30 - may be reinstated. The commission will be headed by Barry Gossett, a regent and top donor, and Linda Clement, vice president for student affairs. In 2011, Gossett and Clement were co-chairs of the commission that recommended that eight of the university's 27 teams be discontinued because of severe, longstanding budget issues.
BUSINESS
By Chris Korman | November 30, 2012
The Maryland Racing Commission set a Nov. 30 deadline for the completion of what could be an unprecedented 10-year deal to outline the future of horse racing in the state . It will come and go without signatures on the contract. "I wouldn't read anything negative into that," said Alan Foreman, lawyer for the state's horsemen. There's no impasse, he said, on any significant part of the agreement. Mike Hopkins, executive director of the racing commission, said he has spoken to members of the board, including chairman Bruce Quade, and they are satisfied with the progress made so far. They expect a deal to be finalized before their final meeting of the year on Dec. 18. Tom Chuckas of the Maryland Jockey Club, owner of Laurel and Pimlico, struck the most measured tone saying "when it is appropriate, we will make an announcement.
SPORTS
By Sandra McKee and The Baltimore Sun | October 16, 2012
After a vigorous discussion, the Maryland Racing Commission approved the first raise in 12 years for losing jockeys during Tuesday's regular monthly meeting at Laurel Park. All losing riders -- those who finish out of the top 3 spots in a race -- will now make $75 per mount instead of a sliding scale that started at $45. The commission debated whether $75 was a large enough increase but passed the raise with an amendment requiring the board to reassess the amount of the raise, based on available funding numbers six to 12 months after it goes into effect Jan. 1. The $75 plan was proposed by the Maryland Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association by unanimous approval of its board.
SPORTS
By Chris Korman, The Baltimore Sun | June 19, 2012
Secretariat wins again. More than 39 years after the super horse won the Preakness on his way to a Triple Crown, the Maryland Racing Commission ruled Tuesday that he had set what was then a track and is still a race record, covering the mile-and-three-sixteenths in 1:53. Secretariat now holds the race record in all three Triple Crown (Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont) events. "It's nice to finally have this recognized, because the sport depends on accuracy," said Secretariat owner Penny Chenery, who helped pushed for the adjustment.
NEWS
By Norman Gelman | June 14, 2012
It's time for someone to say it aloud. As a member of the Maryland Commission on Civil Rights for more than a decade and its chairman for much of that time, I'm willing to take the risk of being misunderstood. African-Americans are no longer the principal targets of discrimination. Notice I said "discrimination," not prejudice. In the universe of laws to enforce equal opportunity, discrimination is easy to allege but difficult to prove. And prejudice doesn't exactly matter. Corporate America and a good many small organizations have learned how to fire employees without violating anti-discrimination statutes.