Obligation now passes to the New York State Assembly to act swiftly to approve new bill
Vernon, N.Y. – June 8, 2017 – Jeff Gural, Chairman of American Racing and Entertainment, announced today that the New York State Senate has passed the bill which will give much needed tax relief for Vernon Downs. Paving the way for the passage of this critical bill was New York State Senator Joseph Griffo, representing the 47th District assisted by New York State Senator John Bonacic, Chair of the Senate Racing Gaming and Wagering Committee and New York State Senator Fred Akshar, representing the 52nd District. The obligation now falls on the New York State Assembly to pass the bill, which would provide tax relief for Vernon Downs has now had to compete with additional full casinos with table games.
In April, Jeff Gural announced that Vernon Downs would be delaying the opening day of racing amid significant financial losses due to the added competition from Yellow Brick Road, Lago and Rivers. Final preparations were underway at Vernon Downs to open the 64th season of live harness racing, which was set for Friday, April 21. However, increased competition from the addition of these three casinos with table games has taken revenue away from the property and caused Vernon to be losing on average about $150,000 per month since November. Jeff Gural indicated that tax relief requested from New York State, is necessary and would still allow Vernon to continue to employ approximately 300 local union workers, preserve horse racing jobs and still allow approximately ten million dollars to go to education. Racing commenced last month at the racino however the significant financial pressures remain due to the fact that Vernon actually has a higher tax rate than any of its competitors.
“We are extremely grateful to New York State Senator Joseph Griffo and his colleagues for helping this bill pass through the New York State Senate. Without his strong support and leadership this might never have been accomplished. It is the first step to achieving necessary tax relief at Vernon Downs. However, we have advised the New York State Assembly that we cannot afford to wait until the last day to approve this bill, and if we have no assurances from them then we have no choice other than starting the process to close. Since reopening as a racino in 2006, Vernon Downs has given close to $150 million to the State for education, yet as previously mentioned Vernon has the highest tax rate of its competitors. The racino is hopeful that the bill will be passed by the New York State Assembly on Monday, June 12 so that our employees can sleep easy and our horsemen know their future is secure for a minimum of the next five years. It seems hard to believe that any responsible government official would want to see Vernon close so I remain optimistic that the Assembly will act quickly,” said Jeff Gural.
In addition to its video lottery terminals, Vernon Downs offers live harness racing, concerts and other entertainment. Jeff Gural owns Vernon Downs in Vernon, NY and Tioga Downs in Nichols, NY. In the last decade, Tioga Downs and Vernon Downs have created more than 1,000 family-sustaining jobs. For more information on Vernon Downs, please visit www.vernondowns.com.
