Missouri Gaming Commission member Dan Finney recently asked State Auditor Nicole Galloway to investigate problems within the MGC, following MGC Executive Director Dave Grothaus’ announcement he was would retire May 1. “The Gaming Commission has brought in $300 million to $400 million in tax revenue every year for the last several years. It is an important and complex commission. It needs to be audited,” Finney wrote.
Galloway’s spokeswoman Steph Deidrick said, “Missouri State Auditor’s Office staff have had a conversation with a member of the Missouri Gaming Commission who was interested in requesting an audit of the commission. We are taking the concerns under review.”
In announcing his retirement on April 1, Grothaus, who was paid $128,000 annually, wrote his attempts to cut spending at the “bloated” agency faced fierce resistance. He stated certain members of the Missouri Highway Patrol assigned to work at the state’s 13 casinos engaged in “guerrilla warfare” in an attempt to block his plans to save the agency millions of dollars by replacing them with lower-paid civilian employees.
Grothaus noted fringe benefits for patrol officers are much higher than for civilian employees. In addition, Grothaus said “excessive vehicle expenditures are not needed for the job they perform.” He wrote, “It has become obvious that the direction of the commission under my leadership is incompatible with the vision of certain commissioners.”
That would include commission Chairman Mike Leara, who said, “My reaction is ‘Why?’ I’m not aware of anything that would require an audit.” Leara added since the state’s casinos are closed due to Covid-19, current staff can manage the agency’s work.
“We just need to take it slow. I don’t think we have an immediate need,” Leara said.
