ANNAPOLIS, Md. -- A judge on Wednesday upheld a state commission's decision to reject a slot machine license bid by the Laurel Racing Association after the group failed to put up the required licensing fee.
Laurel Racing filed a lawsuit in Anne Arundel County Circuit Court in an effort to get its bid reconsidered.
The dispute stems from a required upfront payment of $3 million per 500 requested slot machines that the state required by a Feb. 2 deadline. Laurel Racing submitted a bid, but failed to include the $28.5 million fee for its proposal to put 4,750 slot machines at the Laurel Park horse racing track in Anne Arundel County.
Alan Rifkin, an attorney for the racing association, argued that Laurel Racing did not include the fee because it's unconstitutional for the state to require an upfront payment when it's powerless to guarantee the money could be refunded under the law that was passed.
State lawyers argued that the money would be refundable and that the racing association had indicated it wasn't putting up the money because of market conditions.
Judge William Mulford II denied Rifkin's request for intervention, arguing the commission's decision "is constitutional and lawful." Mulford noted that the slot machine licensing process was defined by the General Assembly and approved by voters in a November constitutional amendment.
"Further delay and uncertainty over the status of the video lottery terminal program would serve only to impede the clearly expressed interest of the General Assembly and the voters of Maryland," Mulford wrote.
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Rifkin did not immediately return a call seeking comment.
Laurel Racing is a subsidiary of Canada-based Magna Entertainment Corp., which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection last week, saying it was unable to obtain new financing while supporting its existing debt.
Magna Entertainment Corp., whose operations include Baltimore's Pimlico racetrack that hosts the Preakness Stakes, the middle jewel of the Triple Crown, said it would continue to operate while it reorganizes under the supervision of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware.
