...and is mulling whether the expansion can be accomplished with, or without, permission of the voters in a referendum election. 

Attorneys for Oaklawn and Southland Greyhound Park in West Memphis said a law that allowed for the elections on gambling was "constitutional" and asked the court to uphold the actions.

According to Martha Adcock, of the Family Action Council Committee, the act handed over the authority to call an election from the government to a private business, the race tracks.

Business Decision

“It is so unusual that a legislature would say that a private business has the option of deciding who gets to vote in a local election,” Adcock said. “If you look at Oaklawn and Southland, they don’t have any cloak of governmental authority."

Justice Tom Glaze questioned Adcock. He was trying to relate her argument to the court’s 1989 decision in a case called, Swanberg v. Tart. She said the court has previously ruled that although the General Assembly cannot delegate its power to make a law, it can make a law and prescribe the condition upon which it may become operative. That appears to be the case in the casino expansion -- the track owners can decide to expand if they wish. No vote is needed.

In West Memphis, the home of Southland, the proposal passed by a large margin, while in Hot Springs, the home of Oaklawn, electronic gambling passed by a narrow margin. Some say the voting is not needed -- the legislature has already spoken on the matter.

Jim Simpson, an attorney representing Oaklawn, said the thoroughbred track needs to be able to provide the games to compete with other tracks in nearby states.

“The act says that the same kind of outlets in Louisiana and Oklahoma are fighting with two arms and Oaklawn has one arm tied behind its back,” Simpson said. “The money going out of state is part and parcel due to the electronic games of skill at those competing facilities, and they’re not that far away.”

The arguments at the Supreme Court took slightly less than an hour.

Jerry Cox, executive director of the Arkansas Family Council, said he looked forward to a favorable ruling from the court.

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