Horse Racing Out, Quickie Weddings In
The State of New Jersey is setting it self up to to replace the the $780 million that the horse racing industry contributes to the economy, including $115 million in tax revenue, by drawing tourists to the state for quickie weddings.
During his press conference in Trenton yesterday Governor Chris Christie said that Monmouth Park Racetrack would close unless the “completely untrustworthy,” “millionaire” thoroughbred horsemen offer the state acceptable terms to keep the track open within the next week.
The deal to transfer Monmouth Park from state control to the management of developer and casino investor Morris Bailey apparently fell apart over the New Jersey Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association’s demand that they have the rights to a small number of racing days or receive $5 million for not getting those rights for which they had previously negotitated but the state later didn’t want to give them.
Christie said, ““I am no longer going to permit millionaire horsemen to take money from waiters and waitresses and police officers and teachers or the taxpayers of this state to fund their industry,” according to The Asbury Park Press.
Those waiters and waitresses can serve food and drink to lovestruck tourists rushing to New Jersey for a quickie weddings. Down the hall from Christie’s press conference, the Assembly Judiciary Committee was unanimously passing a bill that, if passed by the full Assembly, the Senate and signed by the Governor, will eliminate the 72-hour waiting period for marriage licenses.
The police can take domestic dispute calls involving those tourists who come back to New Jersey within 30 days for the no questions asked annulments that the bill allows. The teachers can educate the offspring of those marriages, annulled or not, that stay in New Jersey and are not aborted.
The bill, sponsored by Assemblyman Louis Greenwald, D-Norcross, is designed to give New Jersey a competitive edge over neighboring states in attracting couples who want to get married immediately.
A bill to allow Atlantic City casinos to accept bets on the success or failure of new marriages has not been introduced yet.
Posted: December 13th, 2011 | Author: Art Gallagher | Filed under: Horse Racing Industry | Tags: Atlantic City, Chris Christie, Horse Racing Industry, Monmouth Park, Morris Bailey, New Jersey Throughbred Horsemen's Association, Wedding Industry | 13 Comments »