Estimated read time: 1-2 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) — Atlantic City taxpayers have been left on the hook for about $65,000 in security costs from this year's Miss America pageant parade.
The city was forced to cover the tab after organizers said they couldn't pay, The Press of Atlantic City reported (http://bit.ly/1jekvY0).
The Miss America Organization says the Boardwalk parade is like other major events that rely on public agencies for security and that it wasn't privy to costs.
Atlantic City is usually responsible for paying for the parade's police detail and subsequent cleanup of the Boardwalk.
The newspaper obtained cost-related emails through an open records request.
Records show the Miss America Organization ran an $882,278 deficit in 2013, the year the pageant returned to Atlantic City from Las Vegas.
The organization now says it's on firm financial footing.
State officials helped lure the pageant by promising a $7.3 million subsidy package through the end of this year.
Talks of a contract extension for the pageant are clouded by a proposed five-bill package designed to stabilize Atlantic City's finances.
Plans calls for allocating roughly $25 million to $30 million in annual Casino Reinvestment Development Authority funding to the city to help pay off municipal debts. Part of the authority's funding helps bankroll the pageant.
Josh Randle, chief operating officer for the Miss America Organization, couldn't provide an estimate of how much the pageant costs the public.
___
Information from: The Press of Atlantic City (N.J.), http://www.pressofatlanticcity.com
Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
