A petition drive is under way in Jefferson County, Texas to hold a referendum on opening a horse racetrack. Elias Hernandez and Kevin Johnson, both associated with Renaissance Hospitality, said they collected more than 400 signatures in four days. They have until October 21 to gather the required number of valid voter signatures for the issue to placed on the May 2019 ballot. Johnson stated, “We want legislation to give people a vote, which hasn’t happened in Texas. This is so Jefferson County, if the opportunity for legal gambling arises, won’t be left out.”
Beyond opening a racetrack, Hernandez and Johnson admitted the ultimate goal would be to develop a casino. They said state Rep. Joe Deshotel filed legislation to authorize destination resort casinos on the Texas coast in Jefferson, Galveston and Nueces counties. If the legislation would pass, Hernandez and Johnson said the a portion of the gambling revenue would go to the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association, which provides windstorm and hail insurance to coastal counties.
Johnson said Texas has nine licenses for racetracks but only seven tracks are in operation. He noted the state loses $2.4 billion a year as Texans gamble in Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana and at the Coushatta Casino Resort in nearby Kinder, Louisiana. He said Texas also loses money to Oklahoma and New Mexico casinos.
“The whole industry is changing. Gambling used to be looked at with all the bad that has come with it. But casinos have become a large form of entertainment. The pressure will come off legislators who support it,” Johnson said.
