Responsible Gambling Collaborative Uncovers Misuse of Tax Revenues

The American gambling marketing has been operating under the watchful eye of the Responsible Gambling Collaborative since 2018. Far from just being another solo watchdog organisation intent on harassing gambling operators, the Collaborative has the support of some heavy hitters.

The RGC boasts the following participants on their About page:

“… participants include the American Gaming Association, Association of Gaming Equipment Manufacturers, Association of Problem Gambling Service Administrators, Harvard Medical School, National Center for Responsible Gaming, National Council on Problem Gambling, National Indian Gaming Association, National Thoroughbred Racing Association, the Nevada Council on Problem Gambling, North American Association of State and Provincial Lotteries, Responsible Gambling Council, University of Nevada, Las Vegas – International Gaming Institute, University of Memphis, Washington State University, and Yale School of Medicine.”

The aim of the collaborative is to intelligently analyse and predict gambling behaviours and challenges so that they can “identify the programs and policies that best address responsible gambling, the prevention of problem gambling, and hold government accountable for supporting proven effective solutions”.

 What Is ‘Responsible Gambling Effectiveness Principles’?

The aim of the Collaborative is to gain consensus from experts and supporting entities from as many fields of study as possible, this includes “academics, researchers, advocacy groups, and casino gaming industry organizations”.

This consensus is then tabled as the ‘Responsible Gambling Effectiveness Principles’. These guiding principles will be used to create a framework for all future recommendations relating to the prevention of problem gambling and promoting responsible gambling.

 The Collaborative Releases First In-Depth Study

Earlier this month the Collaborative released its first research paper into the use and management of state funding for the purposes of quelling problem gambling and uplifting responsible gambling efforts.

In response to the paper, Bill Miller, president and CEO of the American Gaming Association said:

“The Responsible Gambling Collaborative has an important role to play as we chart a new course for responsible gaming, and the AGA is proud to be a part of it. The research released today provides important insight into the allocation of funding for essential programs. As the top benefactor of gaming taxes, it’s troubling to see that state responsible gaming funds are not always used for their intended purpose.”

 What Did The Report Reveal?

The facts which caused Miller to make the strongly-worded statement was the fact that the Collaborative either proved that several states did not use their funding correctly, or that the use of the funds was so obfuscated as to be impossible to determine its use.

The 14 offending states listed in the study are:

• Six states (IN, MD, NJ, NV, NY, PA) likely spent the allocated tax money on RG/PG issues.
• Four states (KS, LA, MO, OK) likely did not spend the allocated tax money on RG/PG issues.
• Four states (CA, IA, MS, OH) are unclear. In these cases, funds may be partially diverted to other issues, the state has recently rolled back the dedicated funding streams for RG/PG altogether, or never had a dedicated funding stream.

With over $10 billion collected annually tax revenues there should be ample support for the gambling sector however as can be seen from the above examples there appears to be a lot of confusion as to where those funds are being used.

The Collaborative intends to use this data in combination with the support of its partner organisations to get the government to properly allocate the tax revenue to ensure the safety and support of the American gambling community.