BANGOR – The Maine Attorney General’s Office announced Thursday it will release some of the documents it has amassed as part of its background check of Bangor racino developer Shawn Scott, some of his associates and nearly 40 of his limited liability corporations.

The requests from several Maine media outlets for documents were made last week under Maine’s Freedom of Access law. The documents are scheduled to become available at noon Wednesday. That information originally was not going to be released until after it was submitted to the Maine Harness Racing Commission next month.

The documents cover a range of matters relating to the application for the state harness racing license Scott needs in order to fulfill his $30 million plan for Bangor Raceway.

The list includes financial reports and other documents, corporate information, correspondence, memorandums, invoices, transcripts of interviews and meetings, meeting minutes, bankruptcy records, documents describing litigation involving Scott in other states, print media reports, relevant statutes and rules and ownership and funding models for Capital Seven LLC and some of Scott’s other ventures.

The documents were collected in Maine and several other states in which Scott has done business, including Louisiana, New York and Nevada.

Though the state issued a list of dozens of documents to be released, the actual number that will be available could be lower because Scott is contesting the release of several of them in Kennebec County Superior Court, according to Linda Pistner, chief deputy attorney general.

The state won’t release documents that might constitute a personal invasion of privacy, such as materials containing addresses and Social Security numbers or confidential business information.

Last year, representatives of Capital Seven LLC, one of the companies owned by Scott, approached Bangor with plans to develop a $30 million “racino,” or racetrack casino, at city-owned Bangor Raceway. Plans call for improvements to racing facilities there as well as the construction of such amenities as a hotel and conference center.

That plan appears to be nearing fruition. Scott has struck development and lease agreements with the city of Bangor. He has won local and state approval for slot machines in separate referendums. The only remaining obstacle is a state harness racing license.

The Maine Harness Racing Commission is slated to consider Scott’s application, as well as applications from the city of Bangor and an Iowa-based competitor, during the week beginning Dec. 15.

The licensing process involves a background investigation of developers by staff from the Attorney General’s Office. State law governing harness racing licensing requires that applicants and their associates and creditors be of “good moral character” and that applicants be “financially responsible.”

What effect, if any, recent revelations about a Scott associate’s 2-decades-old felony theft conviction might have on Scott’s license application remain unclear. Pistner said the racing commission will determine if the conviction is relevant, and to what extent, when it convenes in December.

In January, the five-member racing panel issued Bangor Historic Track a conditional license for 2003, pending the results of the background check. Initially a 49 percent owner of BHT, Scott is expected to assume full ownership of that company before the racing commission meets next month.

Henry Jackson, the commission’s executive director, said earlier this month that three applications for 2004 racing licenses and race dates for Bangor Raceway were filed by the Oct. 31 deadline.

The applicants are Scott, the city of Bangor and Kehl Management Co., an Iowa-based casino management company that hopes to step in should Capital Seven find itself unable to fulfill its plans for Bangor.

In a related development, Gov. John Baldacci and several state legislators are seeking clarification of the racino bill Maine voters adopted on Nov. 4. The bill, which came before voters by way of a citizen initiative petition, was written by an attorney representing Scott and others involved in the Bangor racino project.

Among the points at issue are the regulation, location and number of slot machines permitted under the law, which authorizes slot machines at Bangor Raceway and Scarborough Downs, contingent upon local approval.

While voters statewide approved slots at Bangor Raceway and Scarborough Downs, Scarborough residents rejected slot machines in their town. But the law allows the slots to be located within a 5-mile radius of the racetrack, so track officials have looked for possible sites in outlying communities.

Some of the questions that need to be answered are whether Scarborough Downs can relocate to get approval for slots, how much regulatory authority municipalities have over racinos and whether the new state law conflicts with the state or the U.S. constitutions.

The new racino law requires Scarborough Downs to win voter approval from a host community by Dec. 31. So far, the Saco City Council has decided not to hold a local referendum on the racino; Westbrook will hold a hearing on the issue Monday, and Old Orchard Beach officials have decided not to consider the issue.

In a related matter, legislative support for a law allowing slot machines at off-track betting parlors is eroding in the face of a threatened veto from Baldacci and Maine’s lukewarm gambling climate, the Associated Press reported Thursday.

The OTB bill breezed through the Legislature last June, and it still has support from many legislators.

The off-track-betting bill would allow up to 200 slot machines at most OTB parlors, and more at OTB parlors owned by commercial racetracks. A share of the gross profits would go to the state, harness-racing programs, agricultural fairs and commercial tracks. There are now five off-track-betting parlors in Maine, located in Sanford, Brunswick, Lewiston, Bangor and Waterville.