Northampton County gets all kinds of money from the Sands Casino. In addition to a host fee, it also brings in about $1.6 million in slots tax revenue annually, and about $1.2 million in table games revenue. State law is pretty flexible about how the table games revenue is spent But it is much stricter about slots revenue. Northampton County had to create the nine-person Gaming Board just to dole out the slots revenue. Priority must be given to grant requests from Bethlehem and other communities that are contiguous to host city Bethlehem. After all impact grants have been awarded, other communities can apply. Most years, the pie is gobbled up by the host and surrounding municipalities.
Pristash, as one of the three at-large members, has to watch as most of the grants are awarded elsewhere. This may seem unfair, but that's the way the law is written. But in his years on the gaming Board, he has never tried to sabotage grant applications or steer things unfairly. He has often been a voice of humor on a Board with a tedious and thankless task.
At yesterday's Personnel Committee, Brown proposed replacing Pristash with Cindy Miller, a well-regarded Supervisor from Lehigh Township. In response to questioning by Ken Kraft, Brown admitted that Pristash wanted to continue serving, but he wanted to replace him with Miller anyway to "mix it up."
Peg Ferraro stated that Cindy Miller would "be fine, but I also know that the person who has the job really wants it."
Ken Kraft, who serves as Council's liaison to the Gaming Board, agreed that Pristash is "very active, very involved."
This appointment will now go to Council tonight without a recommendation.
It's unclear precisely what Brown has against Pristash, although it is perhaps because he was part of an unanimous Board that refused to replace Executive Director Karen Collis with Brown's DCED Director, Diane Donaher.
This nomination is almost certainly headed to defeat tonight, and this is yet another illustration of John Brown's poor leadership.
The Gaming Board appointment is not like a cabinet official, where an Executive appointment is entitled to great deference. In fact, the Gaming Board's enabling ordinance, which was drafted by Lamont McClure after several months of study and discussions with Council, specifically provides that it is intended to be an "independent" body. In the discussions leading up to the Ordinance's adoption, McClure made clear that it was his intent to make it as inclusive as possible. He noted that the County Council could serve as the Gaming Authority, but thought it important to give a voice to those on the ground to work together.
It appears that Brown, in complete defiance of this ordinance, wants to pack the Board with people who will do his bidding. This is an insult to Cindy Miller, who is nobody's puppet.
He has needlessly embarrassed her and Pristash, a volunteer who did his job.
Tacky.
