Calling it “a significant overreach of our Home Rule,” Genesee County Legislator Chair Rochelle Stein said the legislature is fully invested in legal action to overturn a decision by New York State lawmakers to restructure the Western Regional Off-Track Betting Corp. board of directors.
“In our minds, this is a significant overreach of our Home Rule, and we counties must protect our constitutional rights in New York State,” she said today. “We cannot allow for that to be overwritten by an action of the government.”
Stein confirmed that Dennis Vacco, former state attorney general and federal prosecutor, has been hired by Genesee County and other Republican-leaning counties in Western New York that benefit from WROTB, which is based in Batavia.
“This is definitely a joint effort,” she said, adding that the cost of litigation will be shared by the counties involved.
The Batavian reached out this morning to County Attorney James Wujcik and to Vacco’s office in an effort to determine which counties are participating in the lawsuit and to find out more details about the cost-sharing agreement.
In late June, the Genesee County Legislature passed a resolution supporting legal action and the desire to participate with other rural counties.
All 17 director positions, except Schuyler County, have been reappointed since action by Gov. Hochul and other lawmakers in Albany to dismantle the WROTB board.
The latest to join is James A. Wilmot, who will represent Monroe County. The board is scheduled to meet at 10 a.m. Thursday at Batavia Downs Gaming on Park Road.
