Duck Race : County Symphony’s Fund-Raiser, Revamped to Comply With the Law, Scheduled for Next Month

Confident now that it has its ducks in a row, the Ventura County Symphony announced Wednesday that the recently canceled Great American Duck Race will be held Aug. 6 on local waters.

The race--which gives a shot at winning a car or other prizes to entrants who sponsor one of 10,000 rubber ducks dumped into a Santa Clara River canal--had been abruptly called off two days before its original June 25 date.

The cancellation followed a warning from local prosecutors that the event had been promoted in violation of a state law prohibiting lotteries.

Because participants were required to donate $5 to participate, the June 25 duck race would have been a lottery under the penal code. To comply with the law, symphony officials are now offering the public free chances in the race, said Karine Beesley, the orchestra’s executive director.

But Beesley said she still hopes that most people will realize the duck race is an important fund-raiser for the symphony and will still make the requested donations.

“We’ve got four weeks now, so we’re hoping that the public gets behind us,” she said. “But we need to let people know that we need their donations, if at all possible.”

The district attorney’s office said it had a legal obligation to warn the symphony on the law after several other nonprofit and charitable groups complained about the way the duck race was being conducted.

Several years ago local prosecutors drafted legislation to revise the law to permit lotteries for nonprofit groups. The proposal was sent to each state legislator representing the county but was never enacted.

Assemblyman Jack O’Connell (D-Carpinteria) has introduced similar legislation, which passed the Assembly but not the Senate.

The symphony’s problems have rekindled talk of trying again to revise the law.

“I think that charities and nonprofit groups should be allowed to have lotteries, as long as there is some reasonable limit on it,” said Deputy Dist. Atty. Michael D. Schwartz, who drafted the earlier proposal by Ventura County prosecutors.

Schwartz, however, said, “I wouldn’t feel comfortable with someone paying $10,000 for a chance to win a house.”

O’Connell’s unsuccessful efforts came after Santa Clara High School officials were advised that selling raffle tickets for a fiesta was illegal, said O’Connell, now running for the state Senate.

To comply with the law, the symphony reprinted a promotional flyer and changed a brochure that will be distributed soon.

“We need to make it very clear that there is no obligation to donate to the symphony to sponsor a duck, to participate in this race,” Beesley said.

But Beesley added: “People need to understand that the symphony is dependent on contributions for over 55% of its budget. We would hope that they would believe and understand that our orchestra is important to the community.”

Money raised through the event will go the the symphony’s Education Outreach program, which benefit music programs in local schools, Beesley said.

FYI

To sponsor a duck for the Great American Duck Race for $5, or to adopt one for free, write to the Ventura County Symphony, 3451 Foothill Road, Ventura 93003. Sponsors of the first ducks to drift across the finish line Aug. 6 will win one of 18 prizes. For more information, call 643-8646.