WYOMISSING, Pa.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Penn National Gaming, Inc. (Nasdaq: PENN) announced today that former Chief Counsel and Acting Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board, Frank T. Donaghue, 43, has been named Vice President Regulatory Affairs and Chief Compliance Officer. The Company also announced that retiring Chief Compliance Officer, Thomas N. Auriemma, 61, will join the Company’s Compliance Committee which will continue to benefit from his expertise and insights gathered over Mr. Auriemma’s distinguished 34 year career in the gaming industry. Mr. Donaghue’s appointment will be effective July 25 and Mr. Auriemma’s appointment will be effective July 29, subject in both instances, to any required regulatory approvals.
At Penn National Gaming, Mr. Donaghue will oversee all aspects of compliance relating to the Company’s gaming and racing businesses and will act as the Company’s primary liaison with regulators in all of the jurisdictions where the Company operates or seeks to operate. He will report directly to Penn National Gaming Senior Vice President and General Counsel, Jordan Savitch, and the Company’s Compliance Committee. Steve DuCharme, a former Chairman of the Nevada State Gaming Control Board with over 40 years of experience in law enforcement and gaming regulation, is the Chairman of Penn National’s Compliance Committee which, with the appointment of Mr. Auriemma, will be expanded to four members.
Mr. Donaghue was instrumental in establishing Pennsylvania’s regulatory framework following the legislative authorization of gaming in 2004. From March 2006 to June 2008, he served as the first Chief Counsel to the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (“PGCB”) where he managed a legal staff responsible for the initiation and development of regulations, policies and procedures and the establishment of more than thirty-five new regulatory chapters. Mr. Donaghue was named the Acting Executive Director of the PGCB in June 2008 and in this capacity acted as the Board’s Chief Executive Officer responsible for planning, directing, executing and coordinating all activities relating to oversight and regulation of Pennsylvania’s gaming industry. As Acting Executive Director, Mr. Donaghue worked directly with the seven member Board and led the development and direction of policies and operations of the Board, which has an annual budget of over $30 million and more than 260 employees in agency bureaus including Administration, Licensing, Gaming Operations, Casino Compliance, Gaming Laboratory, Office of Diversity, Compulsive Gaming, Communications and Legislative Affairs and Office of Chief Counsel. From June 2009 through June 2010, Frank Donaghue served as Interim Deputy Executive Director of the PGCB responsible for assisting the new Chairman and new Executive Director, working directly with the Board, Executive Director and Executive Staff on various managerial and administrative matters including budget, information technology, and human resources. In this capacity, Mr. Donaghue oversaw preparations for the potential gaming expansion in Pennsylvania including the development of draft regulations regarding the implementation of table games at existing casinos.
Mr. Donaghue most recently served Of Counsel to Ballard Spahr and prior to his service with the PGCB, Mr. Donaghue served as the Chief Deputy Attorney General and Director, Bureau of Consumer Protection for six years, where he directed the law enforcement and advocacy efforts of the Bureau of Consumer Protection and its seven regional offices while overseeing a staff of 60 attorney and agents and administrative personnel handling more than 40,000 consumer complaints and approximately 150 legal actions each year. He also served in several other capacities as a Deputy Attorney General under former Pennsylvania Attorney Generals, Tom Corbett, Jerry Pappert and Mike Fisher. Mr. Donaghue began his legal career as a judicial law clerk for the Honorable Ronald D. Castille, currently the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania.
Jordan Savitch, commented, “Licensing, legal and regulatory compliance are the foundations of the gaming industry and Frank’s appointment and Tom’s addition to our Compliance Committee underscore Penn National’s commitment to bringing the most qualified individuals to these important positions. Frank’s contributions to the establishment of Pennsylvania’s gaming regulatory, compliance and enforcement framework and overall knowledge of the gaming regulatory environment and corporate regulatory compliance further strengthen our regulatory affairs and compliance teams.
“We are extremely grateful for Tom Auriemma’s compliance leadership and contributions over the last four years and his appointment to our Compliance Committee and availability to work with Frank and our 22-person compliance staff will be a tremendous asset for Penn National given the growing geographic breadth of our operations and plans for further expansion. With Steve DuCharme serving as the Chairman of the Compliance Committee, Penn National has a deep base of regulatory compliance experience, leadership, personnel and resources. We’re fortunate to have a high caliber team in this critical function and their well-earned reputations for integrity in advocating for regulatory compliance will be great assets for Penn National.”
Thomas Auriemma has over 30 years of experience as a casino regulator, having previously served as former Director of the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement and Deputy Director of the agency. He also previously served as the Deputy Director for Legal Affairs for the New Jersey Casino Control Commission and as the Commission’s Senior Assistant Counsel. Prior to his regulatory work in the gaming industry Mr. Auriemma served as a Deputy Attorney General with the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office Division of Criminal Justice.
Steve DuCharme was previously employed in gaming regulatory and law enforcement positions for 30 years, including 10 years as a member of the Nevada State Gaming Control Board and two years as its chairman. In addition, he served one term as the Chairman of the International Association of Gaming Regulators prior to his retirement in 2001.
Mr. Donaghue is admitted to practice in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and is a member of the International Association of Gaming Advisors and the American Bar Association. He earned a J.D. degree from Widener University School of Law in 1993 and a B.A. in Political Science, from The Catholic University of America in 1990.
About Penn National Gaming
Penn National Gaming, through its subsidiaries, owns, operates or has ownership interests in gaming and racing facilities with a focus on slot machine entertainment. The Company presently operates twenty-six facilities in eighteen jurisdictions, including Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, West Virginia, and Ontario. In aggregate, Penn National's operated facilities feature approximately 29,000 gaming machines, approximately 600 table games, 2,400 hotel rooms and 1.1 million square feet of gaming floor space.
Through a joint venture, Penn National is developing a full casino at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City, which is anticipated to open in the first quarter of 2012, and is also developing casinos in Toledo and Columbus, Ohio, with openings targeted for 2012.
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Actual results may vary materially from expectations. Penn describes certain of these risks and uncertainties in its filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2010. Meaningful factors that could cause actual results to differ from expectations include, but are not limited to, risks related to the following: our ability to receive, or delays in obtaining, the regulatory approvals required to own, develop and/or operate our facilities, or other delays or impediments to completing our planned acquisitions or projects, including favorable resolution of any related litigation; our ability to secure state and local permits and approvals necessary for construction; construction factors, including delays, unexpected remediation costs, local opposition and increased cost of labor and materials; the passage of state, federal or local legislation (including referenda) that would expand, restrict, further tax, prevent or negatively impact operations in or adjacent to the jurisdictions in which we do business (such as a smoking ban at any of our facilities) or in jurisdictions where we seek to do business; our expectations for the continued availability and cost of capital; the outcome of pending legal proceedings; our dependence on key personnel; the impact of terrorism and other international hostilities; the impact of weather; and other factors as discussed in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2010, subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and Current Reports on Form 8-K as filed with the SEC. The Company does not intend to update publicly any forward-looking statements except as required by law.