Cumming Resident Named to Horse Racing Panel

Rep. Harry Geisinger, of Roswell, was recently named as chairman to the six-member horse race wagering study committee by the state House of Representatives.

The committee was formed because of the mid-April passage of a resolution attempting to seek whether the state could profit from the horse racing industry. They are expected to bring a proposal to legalize pari-mutuel betting on horses in Georgia before a special session of the state General Assembly on Monday, Aug. 15, according to the Atlanta Business Chronicle. 

Other appointees to the committee include, Rep. Tim Bearden (R-Villa Rica) as vice-chairman and Rep. Jon Burns (R-Newington). The three citizen members of the committee are:

• John A. Damico, Cumming, Horse Racing Industry Appointee - Damico, a graduate of Boston College, is a founding partner of Matson Driscoll & Damico, an international forensic accounting firm. He has provided economic damage quantification analyses on a number of high profile matters, including leading assignments related to the 9/11/01 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center Complex. Damico is also a founder of Atlanta National Golf Club, manages The Posse Racing Stable LLC and is also an avid Thoroughbred owner and breeder.  In fact, he is a past president of the Georgia Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association.

• Malaika Rivers, Marietta, Citizen of the State Appointee - Rivers, a graduate of Virginia Tech, serves as the executive director of the Cumberland Community Improvement District, a public-private partnership for transportation infrastructure financing. Under her leadership, the initiatives of the CID have been recognized nationally and internationally by the US EPA, US DOT, International Downtown Association, Georgia Planning Association and the Association for Commuter Transportation.

• Hank Burnham, Athens, Citizen of the State Appointee - Burnham, a graduate of Georgia Southern University, currently serves as Director of Data & Content for Environmental Data Resources, Inc., which is currently the nation’s leading provider of environmental risk information. He has served two terms as a member of the Lake Lanier Islands Development Authority and is the author of several historical books and professional articles.

The House Committee on the Horse Racing Industry was created under House Resolution 643.  For more information about House Resolution 643, please click here.