In a surprise move, Matt Levinson, the chairman of the New Jersey Casino Control Commission, is stepping down after not being re-nominated to the position by Governor Chris Christie. News reports say James Plousis, the chairman of the New Jersey State Parole Board, will replace Levinson. Multiple sources reported the news, but the CCC has not commented.
First appointed in 2012, Levinson leads the emasculated CCC, which lost much of its power to the Division of Gaming Enforcement in a regulatory restructure in 2011. Seats on the CCC were reduced from five to three, with a requirement that all the members not be of the same party. In most cases, the CCC rubber stamps the DGE’s recommendations since the CCC has few investigators on its staff.
Levinson is the son of Atlantic County Executive Denny Levinson and reportedly was a victim in a feud between his father and Christie. The senior Levinson is involved in a case challenging the PILOT (payment in lieu of taxes) program for the Atlantic City casinos designed to stabilize the city’s taxes. With dramatically lower payments to Atlantic County under the PILOT program, Denny Levinson was challenging the legality of the measure.
The elder Levinson said his son was “collateral damage” in the fight against the PILOT measure.
“This is how it works, and it’s not a big surprise,” Denny Levinson told the Atlantic City Press. “If you go along with everything they want, they take care of you.”
Matt Levinson’s term expired in February and he has been serving as a holdover, and presumably will continue to do so until the timing for Plousis’ appointment is resolved.
