Tuesday, December 19, 2006

A recently appointed member of the Pennsylvania gaming board was a longtime
critic of gambling when he was a legislator but he has won thousands of
dollars at casinos, a newspaper reported Sunday. Former state Rep. Mark
McNaughton voted against the state's slot machine law in 2004 and opposed
gambling for years before that, but at the same time he won $15,500 from
2003 to 2005, according to tax returns obtained by The Philadelphia
Inquirer. The five-term Republican from Harrisburg disclosed his winnings on
his federal income taxes but not on state ethics forms, the newspaper
reported. McNaughton said he didn't report his gambling winnings on the
ethics disclosure statement for lawmakers because he didn't believe it was
required. However, the State Ethics Commission says it considers such
winnings income, which legislators must note on annual disclosure forms if
it exceeds $1,300. He said Friday that he was only acting on the wishes of
his constituents when he opposed efforts to expand gambling in Pennsylvania.
"Gambling should not be everywhere. It should be a destination-oriented
activity where you go there and enjoy the day or two and return," he said.
"I don't believe it's in the best interests of citizens to be able to walk
across the street and play slots." He is due to take his $145,000-a-year,
appointed position on the gaming board by the middle of next month. Ethics
rules only bar board members from gambling or taking compensation from a
licensee or an applicant in Pennsylvania, according to spokesman Doug
Harbach. McNaughton said most of his winnings came from playing slot
machines in Las Vegas and stud poker in Atlantic City, N.J.