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Maryland's budget could receive a $100 million infusion if Del. Luiz R.S. Simmons has anything to say about it.

Simmons, a longtime opponent of slot machine gambling, says he plans to introduce legislation during the 2010 General Assembly that would shift the horse racing industry subsidy into the state's general fund to pay for other programs.

"I find it incomprehensible that we are going to take $100 million a year from the video lottery revenue and give $100 million a year to the failing Maryland horse racing business," said Simmons (D-Dist. 17) of Rockville.

During the 2007 special legislative session, the General Assembly passed legislation setting up the November 2008 referendum where voters approved slot machine gambling. At that session, lawmakers also passed the law deciding how the slots revenue will be distributed.

Although changes to the referendum would require voter approval, the revenue distribution law can be changed by lawmakers.

"Groups better wake up and understand that there is nothing written in stone about that $100 million for Maryland horses," Simmons said, calling horse racing a "moribund" industry offering "dead end" jobs without health care benefits. "People didn't vote to give the horse-racing people $100 million — that was never on the ballot."

To pass his change, Simmons said he would introduce it as an amendment to any tax bills that come to the floor of the House — bypassing a committee vote that he expects would kill the motion.

Simmons said he believes he will have support from the three other delegates required to force a recorded vote on the amendment. That would effectively force the hand of colleagues who would prefer not to go on record for or against such a measure.

Simmons also said he intends to introduce legislation that would allow the state to sell bonds for the next three years to fund either public school construction or "human needs" and programs offered by agencies that have sustained recent cuts, such as the Developmental Disabilities Administration.

Selling the bonds at modest rates would allow the state to raise about $100 million a year for the general fund until slots revenues are fully realized.

A letter from the Department of Legislative Services to Simmons on Friday said that the state could raise $100 million through a combination of general obligation bonds and gradually increasing slots revenues that are currently dedicated to horse racing purses.

The state would have to issue $98 million in general obligation bonds in fiscal 2011, $52 million in fiscal 2012, $19 million in fiscal 2013 and $23 million in fiscal 2014 in order to raise the revenue and cover the debt service.

"This increases the support in [the] short-term and reduces the amount available for school construction projects in the out years," wrote Patrick S. Frank, DLS's manager for debt policy.

The state would retire the debt service by fiscal 2017.

Using bonds to generate revenue for the general fund could have consequences for the state's triple-A bond rating, which allows Maryland to borrow money at the most favorable rates, said Neil Bergsman, director of the Maryland Budget and Tax Policy Institute.

"In general, borrowing to cover operating costs is not considered a good financial management practice," he said.

"Having said that, there are some states in the current climate that have borrowed to cover operating costs," Bergsman continued. "Twenty years ago it was almost unheard of, and now that's no longer the case."

Asked about Simmons' idea following last week's Board of Public Works meeting, Gov. Martin O'Malley mentioned that the General Assembly authorized $70 million in revenue bonds in fiscal 2010 to cover Program Open Space costs.

"We're open to all ideas," O'Malley said.

But Simmons said he is not counting on O'Malley (D) to support of the plan.

The state is going to have to make some tough public choices about the economy, Simmons said, adding that he expects "a slow anemic recovery over several years."