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Weprin urges state action to avoid OTB shutdown

By Howard Koplowitz

“We cannot let OTB close its doors,” Weprin said in a statement. “During these tough economic times, when New Yorkers are facing high costs of living, the sub-prime mortgage crisis and a slowing economy, government should not be putting people on the unemployment lines. It should be providing the opportunity for job growth.”There are 20 OTB sites in Queens and 1,500 employees throughout the city.The non-profit was established in 1970 and was created to diminish organized crime's influence over gambling.Weprin argued that illegitimate gambling would take over if the state does not intervene and give OTB a new deal.”If we let the doors of NYC OTB close, the doors of illegal bookies will be open for business, siphoning off hundreds of millions of dollars from the city and state,” he said.Weprin said OTB was expected to have an operating loss in June for the first time, which would force it to go out of business later that month.Mike Murphy, a Queens OTB employee, said he was concerned about being out of a job. “It is ironic that the job security I relied upon is being threatened by Albany's slow approach in dealing with OTB and I am not sure, in this job market, how easy it will be to find a job,” Murphy said. “I have a family that I need to provide for and bills to pay. I don't want to become a national statistic. I love my job.”The councilman said a new deal for OTB should consider the high cost of living and operating in the city and should remake the formula that dictates how much money the non-profit hands over to the state's racing industry, including the New York Racing Association.He said reconfiguring that formula would bring more money to the city, which he said has not received residual revenue from OTB since 2003, except for “a small payment” four years ago. It was unclear how much that payment was.Weprin said the city at its peak received $65.3 million from OTB in 1980 and on average was given $30 million a year from the non-profit before 2003.Reach reporter Howard Koplowitz by e-mail at hkoplowitz@timesledger.com or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 173.