Casino targets local colleges to recruit new employees

The Joplin Globe reported that the Downstream Casino Resort held a job fair at Missouri Southern State University.  The casino, being built by a tribe in Oklahoma where it borders Missouri and Kansas, plans to open on July 5th and is looking for those just entering the job market to promote there predatory industry.

It’s unfortunate that new graduates are being targeted to work in the casino industry.  Forbes magazine has rated some casino jobs among the worst paying jobs in America.  It’s also unfortunate that students are recruited to work in these environments without really thinking about what kind of product they are promoting.  Given how impressionable new students seeking their first job are, I doubt they think about the number of bankruptcies or suicides they will contribute to or the number of families casinos pull apart because of abuse and neglect caused by gambling addiction.

I just hope that those who are looking into jobs in predatory industries like gambling understand what they will be associating themselves with and that they are not unduly influenced because the casinos showed up at a local college looking for new young and impressionable employees.

Starting the Last Week of the MO legislative session

As we enter the last week of the Missouri General Assembly’s legislative session, we wanted to take a moment and share some of our latest “Weekly Legislative Reports” from the main site.

We receive a great number of inquiries as to the status of a variety of gambling bills being considered by the General Assembly, so we have been diligent in educating our friends and supporters on the latest action from the halls of Jefferson City. Please take an opportunity to get caught up by reading some of our previous legislative reports.

We will be providing a detailed summary of this year’s legislative session next week.

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VIDEO UPDATE:  Jason Rosenbaum from the Columbia Tribune Politics Blog posted an interview with House Floor Leader Steve Tilley answering reporters questions about some of the legislation that may be brought up during this final week.

The laughable idea of a casino spending $8 million in an effort to “help schools”

Despite the fact that efforts to remove the loss limit have failed sense its passage, the casinos keep trying to find new ways to expand gambling. We previously reported that the coalition of casinos was confident that they submitted enough signatures to place an initiative to remove Missouri’s $500 loss limit on the general election ballot in November.  The St Louis Post Disptch is reporting that Pinnacle alone plans to spend $8 million on the petition.  They hope the public will buy into the idea that this issue is about the helping the schools. The Kansas City Business Journal explained:

Hundreds of educators from throughout the state, businesspeople and concerned Missouri residents support the Schools First initiative, spokeswoman Anne Marie Moy said.

However, the Kansas City Business Journal explained just how much of a red herring this argument really is:

“The title is very suggestive of how deceptive they can be,” said Joseph Day, research director for CasiNO Watch Inc., based in Chesterfield, Mo. “It should be called Yes for Casinos. They know the only way they can get it done is by offering money to schools.”

An April 15 report filed with the Missouri Ethics Commission lists the campaign contributors as Ameristar ($835,700), which has a Kansas City casino, and Pinnacle Entertainment Inc. ($592,000), which has a St. Louis casino and two others proposed for St. Louis County and Wyandotte County in Kansas.

“If this initiative was actually supported by schools, it would be funded by schools,” [Day] said. “It’s not fair to hold hostage students and their funding to gambling dollars.”

The truth of the mater is the casinos believe that a potential expansion in Kansas could lower their profits and they are looking for any way to expand gambling to secure their piece of the pie.  Unfortunately for the casinos, removal of the loss limit wont bring those gamblers who will choose to go to Kansas back to Missouri because there are alternative reasons why gamblers choose one casino over another. The Missouri Gaming Commission’s own Market Survey explained those qualities and the least important factor was the loss limit.  More importantly, the top factors are access time and distance of a casino, the quantity of slot machines and the quality of bars and restaurants.

Don’t think that removing the loss limit will make those gamblers come back to Missouri because if they leave in the first place, it will be for reasons other that the loss limits.  And don’t think this issue is about helping the schools because that is simply laughable.

Missouri’s Loss Limit Keeps the Criminal Element Out…Again!

There are many reasons to support Missouri’s $500 loss limit, however, one of the most overlooked and forgotten reasons for its support is because it is an effective tool for law enforcement officials. The loss limit provides Missourians with unique protection from organized crime and money laundering.

A perfect example of such protections comes from the St Louis Post Dispatch. They reported the story of man who stole $1.6 million from investors in a pyramid scheme and then later robbed at least three banks when the money went dry. What’s interesting to note is that the man made rounds at the casinos in both Atlantic City and the Casino Queen in East St Louis.

He was caught in Kentucky robbing banks and pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail fraud and money laundering, was sentenced to five years in prison and he was ordered to pay $3 million in restitution.

Because of Missouri’s loss limit he was unable to launder any of the money through our casinos and was forced to take his criminal behavior across the boarder and out of our state.

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POLICY BRIEF: For more information on how the loss limit helps curb crime please read our policy brief entitled “Loss limits and law enforcement: How Missouri is uniquely protected” and check out all of our policy briefs at CasinoWatch.org. Or you can simply listen to the audio version of this Policy Brief below.

Kansas’ Difference Without Distinction

There has been plenty of criticism over Kansas’ decision to “own” state gambling and allow private business to run the operations.  However, recent developments involving slots and racetracks show exactly why such criticism is completely justified.  Rick Alm of the Kansas City Star explains why Wichita businessman Phil Ruffin pulled the plug on running slots at his dog track:

Ruffin, the owner of the Camptown dog track in Frontenac, Kan., said the state’s 40 percent tax bite on race track slots didn’t leave enough cash flow to turn a fair profit.

Ruffin said the final straw in negotiations came last week with the state’s insistence Ruffin pay the entire $12 million in estimated costs to purchase, install and operate the track’s proposed 600 electronic games that technically would be owned by the state.

“Making me pay for the slots put us over the edge,” he said.  Despite state “ownership,” Ruffin said Kansas isn’t willing to pay for gambling equipment, share advertising costs or absorb any other construction or operational expenses.

The story goes on to explain that the Woodlands in Kansas City, KS may also make the same decision despite a long desire to bring slots to their track:

“We have to be very, very careful and make sure we’re doing the right thing,” Woodlands executive Larry Seckington said Monday.

“We’re going to decide if it’s economically viable for us,” said Seckington. “It’s very close. If the numbers come back so bad that it looks like a total loss for us, it would be difficult to move forward.”

Its quite clear that KS is not really owning anything but the profits if they don’t purchase the equipment, market their product or absorb any expenses related to doing business.  The Kansas City Star is also reporting the that this argument is being presented in front of the Kansas Supreme Court:

In questioning the constitutionality of the law, the attorney general argued Kansas would “own” the apparatus of legalized gambling despite the fact it would hold title to no land, build or finance no buildings nor purchase slot machines or other gambling equipment or supplies.

“The right to own and operate those casinos will be sold to the highest bidders, with the state doing nothing more than collecting tax revenue and enacting regulations,” it said.

This simply feeds the belief that the only reason local governments make legal a practice that has been criminalized for over a hundred years is because they want in on the cut.  The Kansas legislature must think this method of “ownership” justifies such exorbitant taxes on gambling but it’s a difference without distinction.  States need to find better ways to balance their budgets and cut spending because it is disgraceful that they keep pushing the idea of making losers of its people to bring in a few more bucks.

MO Gaming Commissioners Reappointed by Senate Committee

This morning in Jefferson City the Senate Committee on Gubernatorial Appointments meet to appoint and reappoint several individuals to state boards and commissions. Among those seeking the approval of the committee were two reappointments to the Missouri Gaming Commission. As stated in the hearing schedule for the committee the commissioners being reconsidered for a new term were:

Darryl T. Jones, Democrat, as a member of the Missouri Gaming Commission (Bray)

Noel J. Shull, Republican, as a member of the Missouri Gaming Commission (Ridgeway)

The committee moved to approve all the appointments and reappointments, including Commissioners Jones and Shull. MO Gaming Commissioners serve three-year terms.

downfall of lottery winners

From Family News in Focus by Karen Johnson:

When it comes to winning the lottery, be careful what you wish for. A Florida multimillion dollar lottery winner in 1990 has died, leaving a wretched financial legacy.

Alex Toth was broke from spending his winnings years ago on luxuries, his marriage had broken up, and he was charged with federal tax fraud.

Plopping down hard-earned cash for a chance at getting lucky in the lotto is a 17 billion dollar-a-year scam for the 48 states with legalized gambling. Chad Hills of Focus on the Family Action says Toth’s story is actually quite common.

“It’s not unusual to hear them say I wish I had never won at all because it’s been a curse in my life.”

Bill Pomery is a Certified Financial Planner in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Three of his biggest clients are lottery winners. He’s seen how front end euphoria can cause financial forgetfulness.

“Most of them need additional liability insurance, additional life insurance.”

The winner will start hearing from aunts, uncles and third cousins he never knew he had.

“The family starts calling and they end up paying off their boats and their cars and their houses.”

Paul Golden of the National Endowment for Financial Education says the largess leads to one more percentage.

“We talking about 70% will lose their windfall within just a few years.”

The lottery preys on the poor, who have no idea how to handle that type of money.

“People who live at poverty or at lower income levels spend proportionately more of their income on lottery tickets than do people in the middle class or the upper class because the lottery is in the business of selling hope.”

Utah and Hawaii are the only two states where gambling is illegal.

“…he was glad we had stopped him.”

The Harrow Times, out of the UK, is reporting just how troubling a gambling addiction can become. They point to an armed robber who stole almost £100,000 to fund his gambling addiction. Unfortunately, this is all too common as those with gambling addiction often turn to crime to fund their problem. The Harrow Times explains just how desperate this gambler was:

Detective Sergeant Mark O’Shaughnessy, of the Met’s Flying Squad, said: “This was a desperate man, who was robbing banks as the only way to fund his gambling addiction.

“When he was caught, he admitted to all the other robberies, and said he was glad we had stopped him.”

Casinos Submit Signatures for Loss Limit Removal Petition

May 4th was the deadline for submitting signatures for any initiative petition seeking ballot approval for this November’s election.  As expected, the casino group has submitted what they believe to be the correct number of signatures for their petition to remove the $500 loss limit.  A spokeswoman for the group was reported in the Columbia Tribune as saying they came in well above the 85,000 to 95,000 signatures turning in around 160,000 signatures.

As we previously reported, the casino-led initiative under the name “Yes for Schools First,” attempted to focus their signature pitch to unsuspecting Missourians on increased educational funding and not  gambling expansion or removal of the $500 loss limit. The St. Louis Post Dispatch explains:

[W]hat’s interesting is that instead of focusing their pitch on the changes in the wagering laws - telling gamblers, for instance, that they would be able to spend as much as they want without having to tote an ID card around - the signatures gathers at Lumiere Place stuck to the same appeal about how the initiative would help education.

Labeling the effort “Yes for Schools First,” the casinos have sought to highlight the portion of the initiative that would increase states taxes - from 20 percent to 21 percent - on casino revenues.

This “schools first” initiative would at first glance seem to have garnered a broad base of support from the educational community but according to the Turner Report:

Since this is a coalition designed to bring funding to education, you might expect to see those with a stake in education- parents, teachers, administrators, education interest groups lining up to back this initiative.

Missouri Ethics Commission documents paint a different picture.

The coalition’s most recent disclosure report, filed April 15, shows $1,427,700 in contributions. Not one cent came from anyone associated with education. In fact, the funding came from only two sources- $835,700 from Ameristar Casinos and $592,00 from Pinnacle Entertainment.

At this point the signatures will be verified and pending approval of the Secretary of State, the issue will be placed on the ballot for a statewide vote.  Given that this issue will go to a vote of the people there seems to be no reason why the Missouri Legislature should consider removing the loss limit this session.

their greed knows no end

At this point it should be very well understood that lawmakers have an affinity for the taxes generated from in-state gambling.  In fact, a lot of commentators have said that lawmakers are addicted to the casino money and will do anything to get more.  The Illinois based paper, The Hawkeye, is reporting a most unfortunate truth:

A bill being crafted in the Senate would cut nearly $3 million in money intended for gambling treatment programs at a time when casinos are seeing record business. That would [only] leave about $2.2 million, plus several hundred thousand dollars expected to be left over from the current year’s budget, state public health officials estimate.  Don McCormick, a spokesman for the state health department, said if the cuts are approved, fewer Iowans could get help for gambling addiction.

Radio Iowa Online is reporting that the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission is appalled at the decision claiming more money is needed:

The chair of the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission says she’s not happy about the plan to cut money for the state’s gambling treatment program. Commission chair Kate Cutler says more money needs to be earmarked to gambling treatment. She says the funds came from gambling revenues and is providing a successful program, but needs even more resources, and to cut it not seems to be a bit short-sighted.

This news is unbelievable.  As if the legislator doesn’t receive enough money from the gambling industry to fund state activities, they are now cutting the treatment fund in half by removing $3 million to fund other programs.  Taking an additional $3 million from the industry is one thing, but to take the very money used to treat those with addictions is deplorable.

how Missouri is leading the way to prevent gambling addiction

Missouri’s $500 loss limit is not the only thing that helps curb gambling addiction; Missouri’s colleges are also leading the way. An article by The Christian Science Monitor, mentioned by WDAM in Mississippi, points to the ever-growing problem of gambling on college campuses. The articles explains:

Forty percent of 18- to 22-year-olds gambled monthly in 2007, according to the Annenberg Public Policy Center in Pennsylvania. That percentage actually represents a decline from 2006, thanks in part to a federal law that curtailed Internet gambling. Still, last year, about 5 percent gambled weekly and had problems such as spending more money than they planned.

Now with talks of Congress lifting the ban on Internet gambling and moving toward its regulation, the number of gambling addicts on college campuses could once again rise. Missouri is leading a unique coalition of colleges in an effort to alleviate and educate problem and pathological gamblers. The Christian Science Monitor further explains:

Whether it’s in dorm rooms or at a “casino night” fundraiser, gambling pervades college campuses. And more schools are starting to take notice of the problems it can spawn.

In Missouri, for example, a coalition of 12 schools is working hard to reach out to students about gambling. They’re starting to address betting through orientations and health surveys. They’re training financial-aid officers to ask about gambling debts if a student requests an emergency loan. And earlier this month, they promoted an educational website (Keeping the Score) with giveaways during National Problem Gambling Awareness Week.

This effort should be applauded but its only the first step. We need to stay vigilant and not only contact our local legislators about preventing the expansion of gambling, but we also need to encourage those at the university level to take advantage of these programs and to continue to work hard at keeping these programs up to par and successful.

The universities are a key area to start the education and fight of this social problem. George McClellan, vice chancellor for student affairs at Purdue, said colleges and universities should “take on a responsibility to provide information about the law, to challenge students to think about their own ethics and values … to be sure they understand where they can go if they think they might have a problem,”

shameless…Rep. Shannon Cooper never met a casino lobbying gift he didn’t take!

Several media outlets, watchdog groups, bloggers, reporters, etc… spend a good amount of time educating the public on particular campaign contributions and lobbyist gifts and there effect on elected officials and the type of legislation they support and pass. Even when confronted with the details of a recent gift or contribution many elected officials simply give the standard answer of their judgement not being affected and continue to happily take the gifts from special interests.

However, there is one state representative who not only flaunts the contributions and gifts from gambling special interests, he fully expects to receive what he wants, when he wants it. After all, he is working hard to keep the casino industry happy. This elected official is none other than Rep. Shannon Cooper. He is among one of the largest recipeints of campaign contributions from the casino industry and has a social calendar filled with gambling special interest funded trips, hotel stays, concerts and more.

He is so proud of doing the casino industry’s bidding that he is now displaying a poster for Ameristar casino on the door to his legislative office in the State Capital building. That’s right…while other legislators display pictures and posters from their district, their alma-mater, or their family, Rep. Cooper proudly displays the source of campaign dollars and several lavish gifts. Don’t take our word for it…see for yourself (taken the morning of Tuesday, April 29, 2008):

The latest casino gift that Rep. Cooper enjoyed came last week with a complimentary hotel stay at Ameristar following a Jimmy Buffet concert in St. Louis. Virginia Young of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported

Rep. Shannon Cooper is among those headed to St. Louis tonight for the sold-out Jimmy Buffet concert at the Verizon Wireless Amphitheater.

Cooper, R-Clinton, said he got a complimentary room for the night at the nearby Ameristar Casino hotel.

“Of course they got me a room,” he said.

The story was later updated:

Cooper said his ticket was free but he can’t remember who gave it to him.

It seems when you take so many lobbyist gifts it might be hard to keep track of the source. In Kit Wager’s report for the Kansas City Star, Rep. Cooper states:

If Ameristar wants to give me a room, I’ll take it. If someone wants to buy me tickets to a concert, I’ll let them. I don’t ask that often.

It seems that the frequency of gifts received by Rep. Cooper put him in a situation where he really never has to ask for them, he just does the work to make the gambling special interest happy and they make sure he doesn’t have to wait to receive a gift. As Randy Turner of the Turner Report highlights:

From the Feb. 10 Turner Report:

By all accounts, the performance given by country music legend George Jones June 10, 2007, at the Ameristar Casino in Kansas City was a rousing success and Rep. Shannon Cooper, R-Clinton, had eight tickets to that event, worth $440, courtesy of lobbyist Betsy Morgan.

From the Oct. 6, 2007 Turner Report:

May 9 was a big night for freebies for Shannon Cooper. He accepted five Kenny Chesney tickets worth $345 from Stephen Knorr, University of Missouri lobbyist, and $343 in travel and lodging from Ameristar Casinos lobbyist Jorgen Schlemeier, though Schlemeier only attributed a part of the cost to Ameristar, since it was the last day of the legislative session, it appears Cooper did quite a bit of celebrating.

Cooper also took a cruise provided by Ameristar Casinos lobbyist Sarah Topp during the National Conference of State Legislators in August.

Wager does note in his article that, ” Cooper, a Clinton Republican, insisted that the free room had nothing to do with his legislation.”

However, this would certainly not be the first time that gifts and contributions have coincided with legislative action from Rep. Cooper. Randy Turner at the Turner Report notes:

From the March 31 Turner Report:

Two days before Rep. Shannon Cooper, R-Clinton, submitted a bill to remove the loss limits for Missouri casinos, he may have been conducting some in-person research at one of those facilities.
Documents posted minutes ago on the Missouri Ethics Commission website indicate Cooper, whose bill would also limit the opening of new casinos in the state, thus lessening competition for those already here, had $771.17 for “hotel accommodations” paid for by Matthew Clark, lobbyist for Ameristar Hotel and Casino in Kansas City.

There are several elected officials that take the time to educate themselves on the issues, and are diligent in their reponsibilites to their constituents. Many of these legislators deal with a great amount of pressure from opposing sides on a variety of issues. And while the practice of lobbying gifts and special interest contributions doesn’t seem to be going away anytime soon, we must continue to stay vigilant and educated in order to keep our elected officials accountable. Hopefully, by examining contributions and lobbyist gifts we can weed out those legislators who will bend at the whim of a special interest gift from those who carry themselves with true character and remember that, “The Welfare of the People Shall be the Supreme Law.”

Past Stories:

- MO State Rep. Cooper accepts casino lobbyist gift then files legislation to remove loss limits

- Legislator who proposes loss limit removal received nearly $1,700 in casino lobbyists’ gifts in 2007

why education funding should never be tied to gambling

The decriminalization of gambling has been an interesting ride. Typically casinos have won over local communities and legislatures by offering them a cut of the action in the form of tax revenues. The most common tactic by the casinos is offering to provide funding for schools in exchange for decriminalization of gambling. The well documented problem with such an approach is the “shell game;” taking money that would have normally been directed to education and shifting into other programs all the while claiming the casinos are putting countless dollars in education coffers.

The worst of these shell games comes when a states education budget is tied to a percentage of the proceeds from gambling. The more that is gambled the more that goes to education. The problem, as explained by The Tampa Tribune, comes when gambling revenues are down. Florida’s situation is explained:

Just when lawmakers thought the state education budget cutbacks couldn’t get worse, they did.

Blame it on the dip in people who buy scratch-off lottery tickets. Lottery income, which usually accounts for about 5 percent of the state’s education budget, won’t be as much as lawmakers had expected this year when they first crafted the school spending plan.

Rep. Joe Pickens, the House education budget chief, is bracing for about a $40 million to $100 million drop in funds, he said Tuesday.

So now Florida is facing a situation where students will suffer if people don’t gamble and lose more money. There are real consequences to this kind of loss of revenue and The Tampa Tribune continues to explained how devastating these situations are:

That money pays for everything from faculty salaries to library books, said Dan Holsenbeck, vice president of university relations at the University of Central Florida in Orlando. UCF received $30.8 million in lottery education money this fiscal year. “As that amount of funding decreases, then we can’t hire faculty for vacant positions, we can’t recruit…” Holsenbeck said.

And those concerns are not unique to higher education. Cuts could be required at all levels of public education from pre-kindergarten to secondary education.

It is deplorable to hold hostage the education of innocent children. Please remember as you hear more and more about initiatives to fund education through gambling that everyone losses. People in Missouri have already lost 1.5 billion annually and if they loose less, that could be less money that goes to fund education. Education dollars would never be used to encourage more people to drink more or used to encourage people to smoke more so why would we allow such dollars to be used to encourage people to gamble more.

“don’t tase me bro!” coming to Missouri casinos

The casino industry likes to tell everyone that they are simply a family entertainment venue where everyone is welcome and no one should have any safety concerns. Unfortunately for the Missouri casino industry, the General Assembly has let the cat out of the bag. As reported by the Columbia Missourian the General Assembly has allocated $32,438 to purchase 24 tasers to be carried by law enforcement at the Missouri casinos. Law enforcement officials believe this is a necessary move to protect Missouri gamblers from the violence one can experience at a casino. At explained by the Missourian:

The Missouri State Highway Patrol, which sought the Tasers for its officers, said they are needed to quell violent situations that sometimes erupt as gamblers are drinking alcohol and losing money. Last year alone, there were 41 instances where officers had to use force in casinos

The casinos are not happy to say the least. Mike Winter, executive director of the Missouri Gaming Association, the head lobbyist group for the casinos, said he was concerned the tasers would be used inappropriately on casino patrons. Considering the level of training and professionalism of our law enforcement officers, to say this comment is offensive understates its impact. These tasers are used as an alternative to deadly force as further explained by the Missourian:

When confronting suspects or dangerous situations, the first option still is to use verbal commands, followed by physical force and, as a last resort, a gun, public safety officials said.

“The Taser is merely a tool within that use of force continuum that is short of having to shoot somebody,” said Mark James, director of the Department of Public Safety.

It’s a sad day for the casino industry when their best argument for keeping tasers out of their violent casinos is potential misuse by a trained officer. If the current level of violence continues to rise in Missouri casinos we may have to increase the number of trained officers at each of these “family fun entertainment venues” from the already unbelievably high number of 110 officers at just 12 casinos. You should think twice before you go out for a fun and quiet night at the casino.

taking aim at the illegal gambling that fuels dog fighting

State Representative Jane Cunningham introduced legislation (HB 2416) which would change the laws regarding dog fighting in Missouri. While dog fighting is already illegal in the state of Missouri, many lawmakers across the country have re-visited the issue in response to the attention brought last summer by former NFL star Michael Vick. The steps taken in HB 2416 are a practical and responsible approach to not only keeping more animals from being endangered, but cutting back the financial motivation that fuels these dog fights, which comes in the form of illegal gambling by spectators.

This week members of the House Special Committee on General Laws heard testimony regarding HB 2416. A variety of speakers representing the Humane Society and Animal Control testified in favor of the bill. Casino Watch also took the opportunity to speak and persuade members of the committee to pass this bill because of the influence it will have on curbing the illegal gambling involved with these fights. Rep. Cunningham’s legislation specifies that any person who is found guilty of a second or subsequent dog fighting offense will be guilty of a class D felony. This change directly impacts the spectators of these fights by raising a misdemeanor offense to a felony with more serious penalties.

According to the Humane Society of the United States:

Spectators provide much of the profit associated with dogfighting. The money generated by admission fees and gambling helps keep this “sport” alive. Because dogfights are illegal and therefore not widely publicized, spectators do not merely happen upon a fight; they seek it out. They are willing participants who support a criminal activity through their paid admission and attendance.

Because dogfighting yields such large profits for participants, the minor penalties associated with misdemeanor convictions are not a sufficient deterrent. Dogfighters merely absorb these fines as part of the cost of doing business

It is important for lawmakers to understand that in order to prevent the cruel activity of dog fighting, we must look at the root cause motivation for conducting these fights, and that is simply the money generated by illegal gambling. HB 2416 is a good step in the right direction of curbing this illegal activity.

Below are thoughts and comments from the bill sponsor Rep. Jane Cunningham, concerning HB 2416 and the testimony provided by Casino Watch.

HB 1864…the new vehicle for removal of the loss limit

At the beginning of this legislative session Missouri State Representative Michael Parson introduced HB 1864.  This bill allows operators of excursion gambling boats to deposit checks on the next business day of the financial institution instead of within 24 hours.  There is no inherent need for the change in law because the Missouri Gaming Commission already addressed this issue through regulation.  MICS Chapter H, Standard 10.08 clearly states, “The Class A Licensee shall deposit, for collection, all negotiable instruments by the next banking day following receipt. Failure to do so shall be considered an extension of credit pursuant to 11 CSR 45-5.053 (N) and RSMo 313.812.9.”

There also appears to be no concerned party asking for such a change or demonstrating harm to the people of Missouri.  This, of course, naturally follows given there is a clear regulation prohibiting any potential transgression.

This begs the question: why, if there exists no inherent need for the law as it is already clearly addressed in regulation, and if there is no concerned party asking for a change, and if there are no gamblers being harmed, would a legislator attempt to pass legislation?

Could it be because the intention of the original sponsor of the bill was not to make this statutory change, but to use the bill as a vehicle for removing the $500 loss limit? The bill passed the house 138-13.  This is not a surprising vote because there was nothing controversial in the bill while in the house.

With one chamber cleared lets look at what’s happening with the bill in the Senate.  The bill was first referred to the Financial, Governmental Organization and Election committee (quite fitting considering the financial nature of the bill).  The following day the bill was re-referred to Senate Ways and Means.  Why the change?  With a quick glance of the members of this committee, it’s easy to conclude that group is far more anti-gambling then their counterparts in Ways and Means.  Then, in Ways and Means, Senator Scott Rupp’s bill, SB 1052, is added as an amendment.  You may recall that this bill seeks to remove the loss limit. Not surprising, this bill, like all gambling bills over the last few years, easily passed out of this committee to go to the Senate floor.

At this point the Senate sponsor of HB 1864 is non other than Senator Rupp.  Now we may never know the true answer to the question of the sponsor’s original intent but there is one thing we know for sure.  Rep. Parsons can choose who sponsors his bill and he allowed Senator Rupp to take control.  If Rep. Parsons did not want this bill to be about loss limits then he should not have allowed Senator Rupp to amend it and take control.

If Rep. Parsons is happy being grouped in with the pro gambling special interests then he has found the perfect way to do so.  If, however, he does not want to carry this scarlet letter then he needs to take immediate action to remove the loss limit amendment and support only the original intent of the legislation.  There is still time to do what is right and I hope he makes the correct decision.  It may be considerably tough for Rep. Parsons to clean this bill up considering he has taken special interest money from the casino industry.

The evidence seems to clearly demonstrate that this bill served no real purpose other than to become a vehicle for removal of the loss limit.  Please contact your Senator and Representative and ask them to reject HB 1864.

change the rules or I’m taking my ball with me

The Joplin Globe is reporting an activity that seems all too common in the gambling industry. They are pointing to Penn National Gaming as the latest in casino companies threatening to take their business elsewhere if the local government doesn’t change the rules in their favor. They explain:

The company seeking a contract to build a southeast Kansas casino wants the state to relax its rules. A law authorizing the casino last year requires a developer to invest at least $250 million in a hotel-and-casino complex. Wyomissing, Pa.-based Penn National Gaming Inc. wants to phase in its investment over an unspecified number of years.

Company President and Chief Operating Officer Timothy J. Wilmott told The Kansas City Star that Penn National wouldn’t rule out walking away from the project. The company is negotiating with the Kansas Lottery, which will own the new gambling. Lottery Executive Director Ed Van Petten said it’s not clear whether the state law allows the flexibility the company is seeking.

I would love to come back with an update that the Kansas Lottery let Penn National walk, but unfortunately that’s not how business is usually played when a casino is involved.

Internet Gambling Push

From Family News in Focus by Josh Montez:

Congressmen Ron Paul of Texas and Barney Frank of Massachusetts have introduced legislation that would legalize computer gambling.

The Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act gives financial institutions a government-go-ahead to block payments to off-shore internet gambling interests.  The Frank-Paul bill would cancel that blockade.  Tom McClusky is with the Family Research Council.
“It makes you question a number of things about why they would try to pass this type of legislation and also the whole mysteriousness around the biggest supporters of this legislation – the Poker Player’s Alliance, and what exactly their ties are to the sponsors.”

Offshore Internet Gambling may be funding terrorists, and it certainly siphons money out of the US economy. Valerie Lorenz with the Forensic Center on Compulsive Gambling  says it’s being fed by anonymous gamblers.

“It is so readily available—in anyone’s home, at school at work—without any kind of limitations or constraints.  You can gamble in the middle of the night at home when your family thinks you’re sleeping.”

Proponents of the Frank-Paul bill say the current ban doesn’t provide protection, but Lorenz says that’s based on who is being protected.

“Government is established to protect citizens.  And here in the case with gambling it is protecting a profitable, greedy, private industry.  It is not protecting the citizens.”

And since the Gambling Enforcement Act was signed into law, under-age gambling, including kids away in college, is down.

MO Attorney General candidate rakes in casino contributions

For many political observers this week was of great excitement and importance as every candidate’s fund-raising reports were made available by the Missouri Ethics Commissions. Several stories have been written concerning the financial status of a variety of candidate’s as they look to build their campaign war-chests for the upcoming months.

As we did last summer, we will once again encourage candidate’s to take our Casino Watch pledge, promising voters that they will no longer accept contributions from gambling special interests. But as we review all the latest contributions and lobbyist gifts in an effort to educate the public on which candidates are being persuaded by gambling special interest dollars, we want to share with you some candidates who are already drawing interest over the source of their campaign funds.

Current MO State Senator Chris Koster, a candidate for Attorney General, who raised eyebrows a few months ago by switching political parties is now drawing scrutiny for the sources of his campaign donations.

According to Missouri Political News:

Tuesday Koster filed a report with the Missouri Ethics Commission that claimed he amassed $593,674 during the first quarter of 2008. A closer examination reveals that 90 percent of his contributions originated with political committees, $226,500 of which was funneled through legislative committees under the guise of in-kind contributions…

While at first glance this may seem like an insider-only story, the Turner Report explains that Sen. Koster has turned to gambling special interests dollars to fuel his quest to be the state’s next Attorney General. According to the Turner Report:

Among the other contributors who circumvented contribution limits by giving first to the Economic Growth Committee, which then laundered their cash through the legislative committees were:

-Ameristar Casinos, St. Charles and Kansas City, $17,450

We will continue to track and report casino contributions and lobbyist gifts as the information becomes available. In the meantime, check back often for updates on our Casino Watch pledge signers.

the next great st louis convention area… and 3:00 am drinking too!

The St Louis Post Dispatch is reporting what could prove to be yet another embarrassment for local governing agencies.  They explain:

The St. Louis County Council will consider helping the Pinnacle Casino in Lemay serve liquor until 3 a.m. daily in restaurants and entertainment areas outside the gaming floor when it opens. Currently, the casino could serve alcohol in those areas until 1:30 a.m.

St. Louis County Executive Charlie Dooley last week asked the Council to declare the Pinnacle site a convention trade area. The move gives the county authority to issue a liquor license that would add the extra time to serve liquor outside the gaming floor. The state gaming commission must approve the change before Pinnacle could serve liquor until 3 a.m. outside the gaming area.

One look at the surrounding area proves this is not a convention area.  And the newly constructed casino facility will hardly qualify as a convention center especially considering how much of the original proposal has been sidelined.

If both the Council and the Missouri Gaming Commission approve Pinnacle’s request, they will be sending a clear message: Its okay for the government to encourage excess drinking and gambling because it means more money in the pockets of the casinos and local governments. We have been embarrassed enough by past actions of casino money buying local government and I truly hope our local government agencies will reject such an obvious attempt to strip more money out of the pockets of Missourians in such an underhanded way.