Louisiana Gaming Control Board Chair Resigns

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Hillary Crain, chairman of the Louisiana Gaming Control Board, is being replaced by Gov. Kathleen Blanco. Crain, the state's top gaming regulator, presided over his last board meeting April 12 in Baton Rouge, and was expected to announce his resignation as chairman after having served eight years.

Contacted at home, Crain said he has no hard feelings about the governor wanting to replace him. However, he did express disappointment that there wouldn't be a smooth transition.

"I'm not mad," he said. "She has the right to put whomever she wants in the job. That is strictly her prerogative. The only thing I would have liked to have done would have been able to transition it a little better. But I was never given any information as to what they wanted to do."

There have been rumors in the last few weeks that Crain might be out, especially after Gov. Blanco replaced the entire racing commission. That commission included some members who had been on the board more than 14 years.

The racing commission, however, is different from the gaming control board because it serves at the pleasure of the governor. Members of the gaming control board serve terms after they are appointed by the governor and confirmed by the Senate.

Crain's tenure as chairman helped the board establish a reputation as one of the nation's toughest regulatory boards. The board oversees licensing and operations at video poker outlets, riverboat casinos, the New Orleans land-based casino, and three racinos--Delta Downs, Evangeline Downs, and Harrah's Louisiana Downs.

Asked if he was notified by Blanco or her staff about being replaced, Crain said he wasn't formally contacted. "They never did really get in touch with me or have any discussions with me at all," he said. "I've not had a single meeting with them."

Crain is the only full-time board member as its chairman. He was paid an annual salary of about $100,000. He was appointed to the board by Gov. Mike Foster in April 1996.

Crain actually found out he was being replaced March 18 when a fax came to his office from the governor's office. His replacement, according to the fax, was H. Charles Gaudin, former chief judge of the state Fifth Circuit Court of Appeal. The appointment had to be withdrawn a few days later because under the law, the governor couldn't make such an appointment unless there was a vacancy.

Crain was reappointed last year by Foster, but he had not been confirmed by the Senate. Crain said he's proud of the direction he has taken the board in the last eight years.

"In my view, there is a difference in daylight and dark as to what we have now and what we had then," he said. "To put it in its best perspective as far as regulation was concerned, when this board was created in May of 1996, the regulatory process was just in chaos. You had the big mess going on in New Orleans and you had all sorts of investigations going on.

"State Police were trying to regulate video poker, and they were subjected to constant political interference in trying to do their job.Yeah, I think that we have accomplished a heck of a lot to be honest with you."

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