Missouri Gaming Commission Executive Director David Grothaus announced he will leave the job May 1, citing backlash to his attempts to decrease spending at the agency, which he called “bloated.”
Grothaus was named to lead the commission in March 2019, replacing William “Bill” Seibert.
In his resignation letter, Grothaus accused some members of the Missouri Highway Patrol assigned to the state’s 13 casinos of engaging in “guerrilla warfare” to try to stop his plan to replace them with lower-paid civilian employees. “It now seems that there is more interest in protecting the assignments of highway patrol officers than in ensuring a sound, proactive, technically competent, top-notch regulatory MGC effort. It has become obvious that the direction of the commission under my leadership is incompatible with the vision of certain commissioners.”
Grothaus said his plan to replace the patrolmen offered a solution to Governor Mike Parson’s directive to find ways to make the agency “more efficient and accountable.” He said the highway patrol is “fraught with much waste because of a bloated patrol gaming division and the use of highly paid law enforcement officers in positions more suited for civilian technicians. I sense that much of the criticism of my management is in direct response to my effort to seek accountability” for what he considered excessive expenses, Grothaus wrote.
For example, Grothaus noted patrol officers’ benefits are much higher than civilian employees’. Also, “excessive vehicle expenditures are not needed for the job they perform.”
Currently the state’s 13 casinos are closed due to the Covid-19. The closures are costing the state an estimated $1 million per day in gaming tax revenue.
Grothaus, who receives an annual salary of $120,000,. He is a former supervisory agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives and served in St. Louis, Wyoming and Washington, D.C. Grothaus’ 44-year career also includes Army and Air Force military service from 1976 to 2017 when he retired from the United States Army Reserve. He also is a former state highway patrol officer.
Commission Chairman Mike Leara said the highway patrol and gaming commissioners often disagreed. “There was tension there. I don’t know who’s to blame. There’s differences of opinions all over the place. I just think the executive director had a different view of the direction of the commission. I think he had some very valid concerns. I think some of those will be addressed in the future. But we’ve got to get through this Covid-19 issue first,” Leara added.
In a separate letter to gaming commission employees, Grothaus wrote, “I have had a full career and MGC has been a great way to end it. But I have many more important things in my life that need attention and the pandemic and other things have made me realize that I need to refocus my energy to higher level goals.”
