Schroder Calls on state Gaming Control Board to Drop Challenge to State Treasurer’s Authority on Board, Improve Transparency
 
HARRISBURG – Following a Dec. 10 Commonwealth Court decision in which the court sided with state Treasurer Robert McCord in his suit against the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB), Rep. Curt Schroder (R-Chester County), chairman of the House Gaming Oversight Committee, said the PGCB should stop challenging McCord’s role on the board and permit him to participate in executive sessions.
 
As an ex officio member of the PGCB, McCord contends state law permits him to participate as a non-voting member. However, he said the board has attempted to block him from attending the closed door deliberations.
 
Last summer, Schroder filed a “friend of the court” brief in Commonwealth Court in support of McCord. In that filing, Schroder asserted that the regulation of gaming by the PGCB must occur in an open and transparent manner in order to garner the public’s confidence in the board’s ability to regulate gambling in the Commonwealth. He said the treasurer, who routinely manages Commonwealth funds and assets, is a valuable resource to the board and his perspective serves to facilitate a more informed decision-making process.
 
“The court’s decision was a victory for transparency in government,” said Schroder. “The ruling suggested that the PGCB’s position against the state treasurer is weak. I am calling on the board to stop challenging the treasurer’s authority and its attempts to circumvent the legislative intent behind ex officio members in executive meetings.”
 
Schroder noted that the court’s ruling only went to the sufficiency of the facts alleged and was not a final decision on the matter.
 
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