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Old 05-10-2012, 08:48 AM   #1561
Indulto
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http://www.bizjournals.com/albany/morning_call/2012/05/cuomo-nyra.html

Cuomo aiming to change NYRA

The Business Review by Adam Sichko

May 8, 2012, 6:33am EDT

Quote:
Gov. Andrew Cuomo said he has begun debating potential legislation to give the state greater control over The New York Racing Association Inc., motivated by an ongoing betting scandal. …
Quote:

"How do you fix NYRA? How do you increase the public's trust in NYRA?" Cuomo continued. "It seems like there is a never-ending list of the problems at NYRA. It’s not one incident. It’s an incident every couple of months for the past 10 years. At one point, you say, let me find a better way, and I think we’re at the point of trying to find a better way."
It appears that the NY Racing Franchise renewal process is still not complete as the Governor now has the NYRA board of directors in his cross-hairs. If the on-going investigation shows that knowledge of the failure to lower takeout reached the boardroom, these guys are toast, and that could explain why they jettisoned Hayward and Kehoe as quickly as they did.
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Old 05-10-2012, 10:10 PM   #1562
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http://www.gradeoneracing.com/davidowitz.htm?read=310

Betting Thoroughbreds
with Steve Davidowitz

In Defense of Charlie Hayward,
a True Friend to the Racing Fan in New York
Quote:
… At the bottom line---from this vantage point---Charlie Hayward has been used as a target and/or scapegoat on more than one occasion during his tenure while various New York politicians----from state senators to assemblymen and different governors, including the present governor---have sought to capitalize on circumstances they have helped to create, including as stated above, the myriad ploys that led to the prolonged nine years of holding back implementation of the NYRA slot franchise.
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Old 05-11-2012, 05:11 AM   #1563
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http://www.saratogian.com/articles/2012/05/10/news/doc4fabfcde26cde369841623.txt?viewmode=fullstory
Source: Gov. Cuomo may change NYRA board
By PAUL POST May 10, 2012
Quote:
… “They (the governor’s office) really don’t like NYRA,” the source said. “They feel it’s a rogue entity. It’s out of control. They’ve forgotten who they work for — people of the state of New York.”
Quote:

… Cuomo would have preferred getting out of the pact, but realizing the legal difficulty, wants to take control a different way throught the addition of more of his own people to the NYRA board, the source said.

It’s believed that Chief Operating Officer Ellen McClain is in charge of day-to-day operations since Hayward’s departure, but NYRA has not confirmed this.

Assembly racing committee Chairman J. Gary Pretlow, D-Yonkers, said he believes NYRA fired Hayward and Kehoe quickly, fearing it might lose the franchise without swift action. …

http://www.troyrecord.com/articles/2012/05/10/sports/horseracing/doc4fac9284b4876882321602.txt?viewmode=fullstory
New York racing at a crossroad
By Nick Kling May 10, 2012
Quote:
… Many would not have given NYRA even a snowball's chance to emerge from the indictment and a bankruptcy unscathed, then get a renewal on the racing franchise it had held since 1955. However, that is exactly what happened. Hayward was a key component of that success.
Quote:

Nevertheless, there was another side of the coin. Horseplayers who expected Charlie to fight for issues like lower takeout, accurate reporting of equipment changes, and other battleground complaints, were disappointed. In many respects it was business as usual.

… Even if a horse racing person is hired to run the day-to-day show and left alone to do it, the sticky fingers of the political process are sure to extract an increasing percentage of revenue.

There are a lot more voters who want their taxes stabilized than care about whether horsemen get higher purses or backstretch workers get better housing.

Beware.
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Old 05-12-2012, 09:29 PM   #1564
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http://espn.go.com/blog/new-york/horse-racing/post/_/id/1369/the-nyra-soap-opera-continues
The NYRA soap opera continues
By Bob Ehalt May, 12, 2012
Quote:
… when you’re talking about keeping more than $8 million out of the pocket of your customers, pleading ignorance while collecting a $475,000 salary has a hollow ring to it.

When that much money is involved, a boss like Hayward cannot just say “oops” and move on without consequence -- even if it was just an unintentional brain freeze. Confidence in someone’s business skills is difficult to rebuild after a 14-month-long goof.

Moreover Hayward’s cause wasn’t helped by the digs he took at some politicians in a published email …
Quote:
… The collapse of NYC OTB should be all any patron of the sport in the Big Apple needs to turn a deaf ear to Cuomo. In more cases than not, government agencies and leaders are simply ill-equipped and lack the business savvy to run or oversee a venture that provides entertainment.

… For an entity like NYRA to succeed it needs to have a long range plan that features building a loyal customer base and giving those people a reason to spend their entertainment dollars at a racetrack as opposed to a casino or movie theater. Money needs to be pumped into the business, not just out of it.

… for the fans, NYRA is necessary. Hayward made a big-time mistake, but he cared deeply about the sport and its fans. And right now those fans need someone else in charge who is concerned foremost about catering to them and insuring the future of the racing industry as opposed to focusing on much how much money will be turned over to the State of New York in the next few months.

Despite what some politicians might say, racing does not belong to the state or even the general public. It belongs to those people who follow racing, who wager on it, who buy horses, who spend their lives training, riding, breeding or caring for horses. Without them there would be no revenue stream for the state tax coffers.

To the head of a successful company, that type of business acumen is a no-brainer. Take care of the customer. It’s Rule One. …
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Old 05-13-2012, 05:39 PM   #1565
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http://www.timesunion.com/opinion/article/Editorial-Another-scandal-another-lesson-3554177.php
Editorial: Another scandal, another lesson
May 12, 2012
Quote:
… Isaac Harkaway's retirement — forced, by his account — followed by a massive rip-off of bettors by NYRA, makes the latest NYRA scandal seem an avoidable one.
Quote:

… Mr. Harkaway was an examiner for the state Department of Taxation and Finance, and the last of his kind. His job was monitoring tax law compliance at racetracks. He verified the accuracy of the reported handle, the commissions and payouts to the public.

But cost-cutting brought an end to the job in 2010. And days after that, NYRA started breaking the law.

… Another tax examiner whose job was eliminated before Harkaway's, Michael Napolitano, says that if a state watchdog had still been around, the impropriety would have been spotted. …

NYRA is an example of a choice. Perhaps nixing just one non-essential patronage job to save a truly useful civil service position, like a racetrack examiner, might have made a difference. …

http://saratogian.com/articles/2012/...b143960158.txt
Horse Racing: Charlie Hayward's legacy more than scandal
By: Michael Veitch May 12, 2012
Quote:
… As the years of his tenure unfolded, Hayward dealt with enormous financial and political pressures surrounding NYRA. Two major ones involved the fight to secure a franchise extension with the state and the millions of dollars owed NYRA by a collapsing New York City Off-Track Betting system.
Quote:

… NYRA got its franchise and Hayward's response to the NYCOTB situation resulted in strong business gains at Aqueduct and Belmont.

Taking place in a state that for decades has been hostile to NYRA, those issues tested Hayward's skills to the limit.

Charlie, by the way, was more than capable of delivering his own brand of irritation with state officials.


More than once he angered them with a testy response, or no response at all. …
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Old 05-13-2012, 06:06 PM   #1566
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New York Franchise Award Recommendation May Come Nov. 21

Wow, my name in the paper again. All I can say is if I get called to testify, it better be during the Saratoga season with all expenses paid!

Ocala Mike, alias Michael Napolitano
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Old 05-13-2012, 06:08 PM   #1567
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Originally Posted by Ocala Mike
Wow, my name in the paper again. All I can say is if I get called to testify, it better be during the Saratoga season with all expenses paid!

Ocala Mike, alias Michael Napolitano
And your actual testimony scheduled for a Tuesday.
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Old 05-14-2012, 06:04 AM   #1568
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http://elmontcivic.com/index.php/civic-news/331-nyra-days-may-be-numbered
NYRA Days May Be Numbered
Written by Administrator Elmontcivic.com 14 May 2012
Quote:
… It was Vanderbilt, the last head to operate Belmont Park, before NYRA took over, who argued that government controlling horse-racing will be like a "dog chasing its tail." Perhaps horse racing needs to examine itself as a sport again, privatize and allow for investments. Elmont and the surrounding communities truly can't afford losing such real estate revenues and tax relief potential that is endlessly not being met through NYRA. …

http://www.timesunion.com/local/article/Cuomo-s-people-called-Obama-s-people-to-push-3555681.php
Cuomo's people called Obama's people to push UAlbany over GlobalFoundries
James M. OdatoMay 13, 2012
Quote:
… The New York Racing Association will have a new chairman by the end of September. That much is clear, because under the 2008 deal that gave NYRA a new 25-year franchise,
Quote:
C. Steven Duncker had to be replaced by that date.

… Cuomo is mulling a bill to ban "equine interests" from the board. Since it was created in 1955 as the exclusive operator of New York's top thoroughbred tracks, NYRA's board has always been dominated by horse owners and breeders. If Cuomo acts on the notion of excluding the horsey set, more than half of the current board, including Duncker, would be out. …
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Old 05-15-2012, 12:46 AM   #1569
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http://www.saratogian.com/articles/2012/05/14/news/doc4fb1a19b2edba336382639.txt
NYRA names Ellen McClain president, Kenneth Handal general counsel, ethics compliance officer
By PAUL POST and EMILY DONOHUE May 14, 2012
Quote:
The New York Racing Association’s board on Monday named Ellen McClain president of the firm, which has been without a leader since May 3, when Charles Hayward was fired in the wake of an overcharging scandal.

Also on Monday, NYRA hired Kenneth V. Handal as acting general counsel and chief ethics and compliance officer and named him secretary of NYRA’s board. Patrick Kehoe, NYRA’s last general counsel and senior vice president, was also fired May 3.

... After Hayward and Kehoe were terminated, “circumstances changed pretty quickly,” Wait said, leaving McClain one of the most senior members of the organization with less than three months before the start of the Saratoga meet.

In a statement issued Monday morning about Handal’s hiring, McClain said “this is a critical period for New York racing.”
Quote:

The report, which is preliminary, gives no indication that McClain was aware of the overcharging.

… In a statement issued Monday morning, NYRA called Handal “an expert in corporate ethics and compliance, governance and risk management with almost 40 years of experience as an attorney.”

http://businessofracing.blogspot.com/2012/05/nyra-first-lets-kill-lawyers.html
NYRA: First, Let's Kill the Lawyers
By Steve Zorn May 1, 2012
Quote:
Quote:
Charlie's a very decent guy who's sincerely tried to improve NYRA, but he's repeatedly shown himself to have a tin ear when it comes to anticipating the reaction of state officials, the press and the public. Cases in point: his initial refusal to disclose NYRA's budget and executive salaries to state auditors and the recent bizarre decision to charge low-volume NYRA Rewards phone bet customers $1 a call.

… Under New York's Rules of Professional Conduct for lawyers, an attorney owes his or her client the duty of competent representation. General counsel Kehoe's client is NYRA. By any standards, missing a legal deadline and then mis-reading the relevant statute is something less than competent representation.

So, I guess it's inevitable that Charlie Hayward will be thrown under the bus by those he made look good. But if he's going down, he shouldn't go alone. Pat Kehoe and anyone else in the NYRA counsel's office who gave bad advice should be right there in the next cell.
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Old 05-15-2012, 12:57 AM   #1570
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Why do I get the feeling the job of an ethics compliance officer is to figure out a way to get around being ethical.
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Old 05-15-2012, 09:36 AM   #1571
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Originally Posted by Robert Goren
Why do I get the feeling the job of an ethics compliance officer is to figure out a way to get around being ethical.
Because you are one of the most cynical, negative, and overly dramatic people in the history of cyberspace. Hey, you asked...
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Old 05-15-2012, 09:48 AM   #1572
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Originally Posted by NTamm1215
Because you are one of the most cynical, negative, and overly dramatic people in the history of cyberspace. Hey, you asked...
You must not be on the internet much.
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Some day in the not too distant future, horse players will betting on computer generated races over the net. Race tracks will become casinos and shopping centers. And some crooner will be belting out "there used to be a race track here".
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