Bill Text: NJ A4260 | 2010-2011 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Allows Standardbred private entity lessee or permit holder to exclude certain persons from racetrack and off-track wagering facility.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2011-11-10 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly Regulatory Oversight and Gaming Committee [A4260 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2010-A4260-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Assemblyman RONALD S. DANCER
District 30 (Burlington, Mercer, Monmouth and Ocean)
SYNOPSIS
Allows Standardbred private entity lessee or permit holder to exclude certain persons from racetrack and off-track wagering facility.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning the right to exclude certain persons from Standardbred racetrack facilities jointly operated by a private entity and the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority and supplementing P.L.1971, c.137 (C.5:10-1 et seq.).
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. Notwithstanding the provisions of any law, rule, or regulation to the contrary, a private entity jointly operating a racetrack with the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority for the conduct of Standardbred races pursuant to a lease agreement, or thereafter licensed as a permit holder to conduct Standardbred races at that racetrack, shall have the right to exclude or eject permanently from the leased racetrack and off-track wagering facility premises any person who disrupts the operations of these premises, threatens the security of these premises or their occupants, or is disorderly or intoxicated, and shall have authority to permit or deny the participation of owners, drivers, trainers and other persons at the racetrack facility, in accordance with the provisions of this act, P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
b. The New Jersey Racing Commission shall, by regulation, provide for the establishment of a list of persons who are to be excluded or ejected from any licensed racetrack and off-track wagering facility premises described under subsection a. of this section. Such provisions shall define the standards for exclusion, and shall include standards relating to persons:
(1) Who are career or professional offenders as defined by regulations promulgated hereunder;
(2) Who have been convicted of a criminal offense under the laws of any state or of the United States, which is punishable by more than six months in prison, or any crime or offense involving moral turpitude; or
(3) Whose presence in a licensed racetrack or off-track wagering facility would, in the opinion of the commission, be inimical to the interest of the State of New Jersey or of licensed racing therein, or both.
The commission shall promulgate definitions establishing those categories of persons who shall be excluded pursuant to this section, including cheats and persons whose privileges for licensure or registration have been revoked.
c. Race, color, creed, national origin or ancestry, or sex shall not be a reason for placing the name of any person upon such list.
d. The commission may impose sanctions upon the licensed racetrack, off-track wagering facility, or individual licensee or registrant described under subsection a. of this section, in accordance with the provisions of this act, P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), if such racetrack, off-track wagering facility, or individual licensee or registrant knowingly fails to exclude or eject from the premises of any licensed racetrack or off-track wagering facility any person placed by the commission on the list of persons to be excluded or ejected.
e. Any list compiled by the division of persons to be excluded or ejected shall not be deemed an all-inclusive list, and the licensed racetrack and off-track wagering facility establishments shall have a duty to keep from their premises persons known to them to be within the classifications declared in paragraphs (1) and (2) of subsection b. of this section and the regulations promulgated thereunder, or known to them to be persons whose presence in the licensed racetrack or off-track wagering facility would be inimical to the interest of the State of New Jersey or of racing therein, or both, as defined in standards established by the commission.
f. Prior to placing the name of any person on a list pursuant to this act, P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), the commission shall serve notice of such fact to such person by personal service, by certified mail at the last known address of such person, or by publication daily for one week in a newspaper of general circulation in the municipality where the racetrack or off-track wagering facility is located. If the person is a member of the Standardbred Breeders and Owners Association of New Jersey, or is licensed by the commission in a capacity to be represented by that association, the commission shall simultaneously notify the association that the person is to be listed for exclusion.
g. Within 30 days after service of the petition in accordance with subsection f. of this section, the person named for exclusion or ejection may demand a hearing before the commission, at which hearing the commission shall have the affirmative obligation to demonstrate by a preponderance of the evidence that the person named for exclusion or ejection satisfies the criteria for exclusion established by this act, P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), and the applicable regulations. Failure to demand such a hearing within 30 days after service shall be deemed an admission of all matters and facts alleged in the commission's petition and shall preclude a person from having an administrative hearing, but shall in no way affect his or her right to judicial review as provided herein.
h. The commission may make a preliminary placement on the list of a person named in a petition for exclusion or ejection pending completion of a hearing on the petition. The hearing on the application for preliminary placement shall be a limited proceeding at which the commission shall have the affirmative obligation to demonstrate that there is a reasonable possibility that the person satisfies the criteria for exclusion established by this act, P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), and the applicable regulations. If a person has been placed on the list as a result of an application for preliminary placement, unless otherwise agreed by the commission and the named person, a hearing on the petition for exclusion or ejection shall be initiated within 30 days after the receipt of a demand for such hearing or the date of preliminary placement on the list, whichever is later.
i. If, upon completion of the hearing on the petition for exclusion or ejection, the commission determines that the person named therein does not satisfy the criteria for exclusion established by this act, P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), and the applicable regulations, the commission shall issue an order denying the petition. If the person named in the petition for exclusion or ejection had been placed on the list as a result of an application for preliminary placement, the commission shall notify the racetrack or off-track wagering licensee of the person's removal from the list.
j. If, upon completion of a hearing on the petition for exclusion or ejection, the commission determines that placement of the name of the person on the exclusion list is appropriate, the commission shall make and enter an order to that effect, which order shall be served on the racetrack or off-track wagering licensee. Such order shall be subject to review by the commission in accordance with regulations promulgated thereunder, which final decision shall be subject to review by the Superior Court in accordance with the rules of court.
k. A racetrack or off-track wagering licensee described in subsection a. of this section may exclude or eject from its facility any person who is known to it to have been convicted of a crime, disorderly persons offense, or petty disorderly persons offense committed in or on the premises of any racetrack or off-track wagering facility. Nothing herein or in any other law of this State shall limit the right of the racetrack permit holder or off-track wagering licensee to exercise its common law right to exclude or eject permanently from its facility any person who disrupts the operations of its premises, threatens the security of its premises or its occupants, or is disorderly or intoxicated.
l. Nothing herein shall be construed to limit the statutory authority of the commission to suspend, revoke, or deny licensure to individuals on the licensed facilities under the jurisdiction of the commission.
2. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill allows a private entity jointly operating a racetrack with the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority for the conduct of Standardbred races pursuant to a lease agreement, or thereafter licensed as a permit holder to conduct Standardbred races at that racetrack, to exclude certain persons from the racetrack and off-track wagering facilities subject to the lease agreement or permit.
Under the bill, the lessee or permit holder would have the right to exclude or eject permanently from the leased racetrack and off-track wagering facility premises any person who disrupts the operations of these premises, threatens the security of these premises or their occupants, or is disorderly or intoxicated, and would also have the authority to permit or deny the participation of owners, drivers, trainers and other persons at the racetrack facility, in accordance with the process established in the bill.
Under the bill, the New Jersey Racing Commission would promulgate regulations to create a list of persons to be excluded or ejected from the licensed racetrack and off-track wagering facility premises. The regulations would define the standards for exclusion, but would include standards relating to persons: (1) who are career or professional offenders; (2) who have been convicted of a criminal offense under the laws of any state or of the United States, which is punishable by more than six months in prison, or any crime or offense involving moral turpitude; or (3) whose presence in the licensed racetrack or off-track wagering facility would, in the opinion of the commission, be inimical to the interest of the State of New Jersey or of licensed racing therein, or both. Race, color, creed, national origin or ancestry, or sex would not be a reason for placing the name of any person upon such list.
The bill provides that the commission would notify a person of his or her placement on the list, and that person would have 30 days to request a hearing. If the person is a member of the Standardbred Breeders and Owners Association of New Jersey, or is licensed by the commission in a capacity to be represented by that association, the bill requires the commission to simultaneously notify the association that the person is to be listed for exclusion. The bill establishes a hearing process to be conducted by the commission. The bill would not limit the commission's statutory authority to suspend, revoke, or deny licensure to individuals on the licensed facilities.
