Senate Sketches # 1188

Senate Sketches # 1188

by

Senator Hank Sanders

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Bingo came to a head this week – sort of.  It has been a general boil on the body of Alabama for months.  It has been a specific boil on both bodies of the Alabama Legislature this entire session.  But the bingo boil came to a head this week – sort of.

The bingo bills encountered rough going from the very start.  They were written by the most powerful bingo operators.  Every provision enlarged the more powerful and diminished the less powerful.  But all the bingo people could not agree on the proposed bill.  Yes, the bingo boil came to a head this week – sort of.

Some sixteen (16) Alabama  counties have Constitutional Amendments permitting bingo.  Some counties have more than one Constitutional Amendment.  Every amendment is different.  A bunch of different Constitutional Amendments on this controversial subject is a root cause of the bingo boil.

The absence of statewide regulation of bingo contributes greatly to this enlarged boil.  Every state with widespread bingo has a statewide commission to regulate bingo except Alabama.  Without a statewide commission, the boil will continue to grow, becoming ever more painful.  But the bingo boil came to a head this week – sort of.

Alabama does not tax bingo on either a state and/or local level.  Every state taxes widespread bingo except Alabama.  This failure feeds the bingo boil.  A few operators grow ever more wealthy and powerful while every other Alabama business is taxed.  The boil is therefore empowered.  But the bingo boil came to a head this week – sort of.

Then there is Governor Bob Riley.  He has gone bonkers over bingo.  He created an illegal task force to cut out all bingo whether legal or illegal.  Even though the task force was illegal, he first tried to close down bingo in a semi- legal way.  He secured a search warrant for bingo in Lowndes County.  The case went all the way to the Alabama Supreme Court.  When he could not secure search warrants in other counties, he decided to proceed without search warrants.  That was unlawful and cut out good flesh while stimulating the bingo boil.  But bingo came to a head this week – sort of.

Anyway, enough of the background.  Let’s see how bingo came to a head.  Two bingo bills came before the Alabama State Senate this week.  The pressures from the powerful bingo operators to vote for the bingo bills were great.  The pressures from Governor Riley and his forces to vote against the bingo bills were great.  Each bill needed a 3/5 vote of the entire Senate just to be considered.  That’s 21 of 35 senators and that’s always difficult on a controversial issue.

I strongly disagreed with how these bills were structured.  I had been trying for weeks to make the bills more inclusive.  However, the bingo bosses would not budge.   Still, I voted for the BIR (Budget Isolation Resolution) so that the Constitutional Amendment would be in a position to be debated and amended.  However, I did not intend to vote for the bill unless it was changed substantially.  But the bill never got to that point.

Most Democrats voted to allow the bill to be debated.  Most Republicans voted to keep the bill from being debated.  Four Democrats voted against the bill and one did not vote.  Two Republicans voted for the bill.  In the end, the bill received 18 votes, falling 3 short of the 21 required.  Yes, the bingo boil came to a head last week – sort of.

Let me say that bingo is not dead.  As I said in a press conference, that bingo may be in the hospital, even in the intensive care unit, but it is not dead.  All the underlying root causes for the bingo boil continue to exist.  We must lance the boil or do something else to bring bingo to a real head.

I have introduced two pieces of legislation that I think will help.  On February 17, I introduced a simple measure providing for a statewide bingo commission to overlay all the Constitutional Amendments and resolve the legal issue.  It would go into effect immediately.  Those that are legal would be free to operate and those that are illegal would be shut down.  Some of the crazy politics would be brought to an end.

The day after the bingo bills failed, I introduced a second proposal to let folk vote just on the question of bingo.  There are no provisions for the big bingo bosses or anyone else.  The people will vote “yes” or “no” just on the question of whether bingo should be legal.  If they vote yes, additional laws would be passed to regulate and tax it.

I believe that these two pieces of legislation would really bring the bingo boil to a full head.  However, if someone else has different ideas that work better, I will support those.  I just know the bingo boil must be brought to a full head, not sort of.

Now on to the Daily Diary.

Saturday – I handled more grandfather duties before traveling to Washington County for the funeral of Rev. George Curtis.  I talked with Inez Curtis, Youlanda Curtis, and others before returning to Selma to handle more grandfather duties.  I also talked about bingo with Senator Roger Bedford, Lester Brown of Greene County, and others.

Sunday – I did Radio Sunday School with Dr. Margaret Hardy and Radio Education with Perry County School Superintendent John Heard.  I traveled to Greenville to speak at the Butler Chapel AMEZ Church for Black History Month.  I talked with the following:  Rev. Harold O. Simpson, Rev. Lessie Simpson, Fred Bennett, Robert Bennett, Gertrude Fails, and others of Butler County; Lowndes County Commissioner Marzette Thomas; Senate Majority Leader Zeb Little; Judge John England of Tuscaloosa; Senator Bobby Denton; Elzora Fluker of Greene County; and Lobbyists John Teague and Don Gilbert about bingo.  I shared discussions over dinner with Dr.  Fannie McKenzie and Bobby McKenzie.  I participated in a conference call about bingo and worked almost until midnight.

Monday – I participated in several conference calls about bingo and other matters.  I also talked with the following:  Donald Stewart of Anniston; Lowndes County School Superintendent Dr. Daniel Boyd; Jaunda Maxwell of Selma; Rev. Tony Scott of Brown Chapel Church; Ted Taylor of Birmingham; Heather Gray of the Federation of Southern Cooperatives (the Federation); Ethel Washington of Selma; and Lowndes County Commission Chair Charlie King.  I traveled to Wilcox County to participate in a Commemorative Mass Meeting as part of the National Voting Rights Celebration.  I returned to Selma after I talked with Sheryl Threadgill Matthews, Arzula Johnson, Darryl Perryman, and others.

Tuesday – I was in Montgomery by 8 a.m. where I participated in numerous meetings including a Senate Session, a Senate Democratic Caucus meeting, and other meetings involving bingo.  I talked with the following:  Dr. Stephen Maddox of Montgomery; Luther “Nat’ Winn of Greenetrack; Agriculture and Industries Commissioner Ron Sparks; Dr. Ed Bridges of Archives and History; Phil Fraas of Washington, D. C.; Lobbyist Joe Fine; Ralph Paige of the Federation; Senator Lowell Barron; Senator Jabo Waggoner; Rebecca Scott of Montgomery; Joyce Bigbee, Norris Green, and Kelly Butler of the Legislative Fiscal Office (LFO); and Senator Vivian Davis Figures.  I spent much time struggling with bingo issues.  I also talked with Reporter Phil Rawls of the Associated Press.

Wednesday – I continued with early morning grandfather duties but still made it to Montgomery by 8 a.m.  I chaired an Economic Expansion and Trade (EET) Committee meeting and talked with many including the following:  State School Superintendent Dr. Joe Morton and Assistant Superintendent Craig Pouncey; Sharon Calhoun of Montgomery; Anita Archie of the Business Council of Alabama; Senator Linda Coleman; and Lowndes County Administrator Jackie Thomas. I met with Alabama and Auburn University leaders about the budget.  We voted on the bingo bill and talked with the media about bingo.  I worked into the night on various matters.

Thursday – I met with Representative Richard Lindsey, Dr. Richard Holland, and others about the Education Budget.  I spoke at a Higher Education Rally and introduced a second bingo bill.  I talked with the following:  Senator Tom Butler; Senator Phil Poole; Senator Bobby Denton; Ola Morrow of Maplesville; Perry County School Superintendent John Heard; Maria Alexander of Montgomery; Rev. Jesse Jackson who was in Montgomery; Senator Bobby Singleton; Senator Quinton Ross; Dickie Whittaker of the Alabama Medical Association; Lobbyist Steve Windom; Senator Arthur Orr; Dave White of the Birmingham News; and Catrena Carter of Birmingham.  I participated in a press conference concerning bingo.  I worked on the Education Budget with Representative Richard Lindsey, Joyce Bigbee, Norris Green, and Frank Gitschner. I returned to Selma for the traditional Annual Mass Meeting, the kick-off for the Bridge Crossing Jubilee.  I made remarks, talked with many leaders from across the country, and went to dinner with a large group after the Mass Meeting.  I talked with the following:  Leonard and Gladys Dunnston of North Carolina; Dr. Esther Hyatt of New York; Dr. James Mitchell of Wallace Community College Selma (WCCS); Franklin Fortier and Malika Fortier of Selma; Sam Walker of Selma; and Selma Mayor George Evens.

Friday – I began writing Sketches and talked with the following:  Mary Hill of Monroe County; Lobbyist William “Noopie” Cosby; Rita Lett of WCCS; Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Sue Bell Cobb; and Felecia Thurman of WCCS.  I went to various Jubilee events.  I shared lunch with John Zippert and Dr. Carol P. Zippert where we discussed legislative and other matters.  I went to the Sue Bell Cobb Induction into the Women’s Hall of Fame where I presented her.  That night I was called at the last minute to come and serve as a lawyer in the Jubilee Mock Trial on miseducation.  I then went to the Public Conversation Program at WCCS and ended the day with a late night dinner at the St. James Hotel.

EPILOGUE – Sometimes things happen that seem so bad.  Then better opportunities spring forth.  Sometimes something happens that seems so good.  Then it turns out bad.  We just never know.

NOTE: Sen. Hank Sanders (D – Selma) has written weekly columns for papers in his legislative district for over twenty years. They are not available online from the rural, weekly papers which publish them. This column is provided by Sen. Sanders’ office to Doc’s Political Parlor for inclusion in the Daily Headlines.