College betting ban hearings sidelined

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Congressional hearings on a bill to bar bets on college sports won't be held during the NCAA basketball tournament. <br><br>Representatives of the American Gaming Association said

Friday, March 17th 2000, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Congressional hearings on a bill to bar bets on college sports won't be held during the NCAA basketball tournament.

Representatives of the American Gaming Association said staffers for Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, told them the hearings, tentatively planned for the last week of March, will be held at another time.

Advocates of the ban had pushed for hearings to spotlight the legislation while the tournament, which began Thursday, was being nationally televised.

"It just would have been mean-spirited, for lack of a better term, to have a hearing during the tournament," said Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev.

On the House side, the date for hearings has slipped to May at the earliest, according to a spokesman for Rep. Tim J. Roemer, D-Ind., a co-sponsor of the bill.

"I suspect it would be rather embarrassing to my colleagues to have these hearings during March Madness," said Sen. Richard Bryan, D-Nev. "I would bet that two-thirds, if not more, of the Senate offices have pools betting on which teams advance in which brackets. Our office has had a pool for years."

Others downplayed the significance of the delay.

"I don't really see any importance whatsoever," said Erik J. Hotmire, spokesman for Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., who introduced the bill last month. "There will be hearings, and the NCAA is pressing very aggressively on this legislation."