Licensed card rooms should be allowed to offer sports betting | Guest Opinion

To read a different point of view, please go to: “Limit sports betting to tribal casinos.”

The responsible and regulated gaming industry in our state is experiencing significant change that is already benefiting Washington residents. As a dealer at Coyote Bob’s Roadhouse Casino, a licensed, regulated card room in Kennewick owned by Maverick Gaming since 2019, I am proud to call Kennewick home for 40 years.

While a neighborhood card room may not be as visible as other gaming facilities in Washington, we provide a safe, fun and accessible entertainment option for people in our communities. We are regulated by the State Gambling Commission, we work hard to keep kids away from gaming of any kind, and we have implemented self-exclusion policies in all our facilities for people who struggle with problem gambling.

Given the debate in Olympia over how to best legalize a safe system for sports betting following the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that lifted federal prohibition, I want to encourage state lawmakers to consider a few important points before rushing anything through the Legislature.

First, a legal sports betting system should be taxed and create revenue for important local services. Second, a legal option should be accessible for adults who are already betting in illegal sportsbooks not allowed in Washington. Third, both Tribal casinos and non-Tribal, regulated and licensed card rooms should be able to offer sports betting to help support economic development and job opportunities across the state.

I am troubled our State House recently sent a bill (HB 2638) to the State Senate that would create a new monopoly for sports betting at Tribal casinos.

I hope that legislators oppose or amend this legislation because it fails to generate new tax revenue for public services, creates a new monopoly and it excludes my fellow 2,200 Maverick Gaming teammates across Washington who are proud to work every day in our state’s regulated responsible gaming industry.

My Maverick Gaming teammates are cooks, card dealers, wait staff, and security personnel in Yakima, Pasco, Everett, Tukwila, Renton, and elsewhere. I hope that our voices are included in the debate because we are proud of our high-employment standards in the industry and our work to help strengthen protections for our workers as we provide a safe entertainment option for our communities.

I respect the sovereignty of Tribal governments. And there is little doubt that the economics of legal sports wagering will support services that Tribal governments provide for their members, which I also respect and understand.

But those economic benefits, which are anticipated to be significant once the industry is legalized and taxed, should support Tribal and non-Tribal communities alike.

Further, card rooms like ours do not compete with the major Tribal casinos in our state.

We are smaller in size that serve as a neighborhood joint that caters to retirees and working people. We are big on connecting with our customers, knowing who they are and how they’re doing. An inclusive legal sports betting system should be as safe and legal for our customers as it would be of customers at Tribal casinos.

Legalizing sports betting may seem like a low priority since many people who are placing bets don’t realize they’re breaking the law and no one seems to be getting hurt. But the reality is, the illicit market is controlled by offshore bookies and supports larger crime networks. With a regulatory regime in place, the Gambling Commission would have additional power and ability to monitor illicit activity in every community across the state.

State lawmakers have the opportunity to create a system where everyone wins. Our elected leaders should not create a new, unnecessary divide when it comes to betting on sports.

This story was originally published March 5, 2020 at 1:40 PM with the headline "Licensed card rooms should be allowed to offer sports betting | Guest Opinion."