New Jersey Senate OKs anti-Icahn casino shutdown bill

Halloween comes at an earlier week for billionaire Carl Icahn as the bill aimed to prevent casino owners from “warehousing” their gaming licenses has passed the Senate.

Icahn has feared that the measure, sponsored by New Jersey Senate President Steve Sweeney, will prevent him from either re-opening or selling the now shuttered Trump Taj Mahal casino.

Press of Atlantic City reported that the Senate voted 29 – 6 in favor of the bill during Thursday’s session.

“Casino owners shouldn’t be manipulating the system and exploiting bankruptcy laws as a way to break unions and take away the rights and benefits of the workers,” Sweeney said, according to the news website. “Atlantic City’s gaming industry is obviously experiencing the difficult challenges of competition from other states, but the answer is not to engage in practices that punish the workers.”