Friday, October 2, 2009 10:25 PM CDT
OUR VIEW: Video gambling a fair shot at cha-ching for state
By the JG/T-C Editorial Board
editorial@jg-tc.com
Clearly, Illinois officials had dollar signs flashing in their eyes this summer as Gov. Pat Quinn signed the Video Gaming Act, which allows for video gambling terminals and payouts regulated by the state.
And why not?
The measure will let every state liquor licensee that qualifies have up to five of the popular gaming machines, according to the Illinois Liquor Control Commission. Sue Hofer of the ILCC said the newly regulated machines will be different than the current types. Normally, these games are for amusement only. Or, they are supposed to be.
Most people are well aware that many, if not all, establishments who have these machines currently do pay out to winners. Essentially, the state is legalizing, regulating — and taxing — what already is going on. Illinois officials hope their share of this cha-ching will add up to $300 million annually. Plans are for the funds to boost capital construction projects.
Despite opposition from some politicians and residents based on a moral objection to gambling, this move by the state just makes sense. Many people already are using these machines; businesses often pay out on them. Now, the state will regulate the industry and get its piece of the pie. It might as well.
This is not a blanket endorsement for government to make legal any currently prohibited behavior simply because people will continue to do it. Video gambling is not on the same level as, for example, underage drinking, or use of illegal drugs. Certainly, some people will continue to break the law and engage in some of these behaviors. One example is this week’s Coles County confiscation of tens of thousands of dollars worth of marijuana plants.
To say that it’s appropriate for the state to legalize and tax the video gaming industry, which already generates cash under the table, is not to say that Illinois should do the same with other types of illegal activities. Video gambling poses no inherent physical danger to users or others as compared to, for example, underage alcohol consumption, which can easily lead to drinking and driving. Nor is it a health risk in the way that the use of illegal drugs, such as marijuana, obviously is.
Certainly, some people can and do get addicted to video gambling and other types of gaming. Some feed their entire paychecks into such activities. But just as the state regulates cigarette smoking — banning it in public places — and yet does not force the individual to refrain from smoking altogether, it makes sense for government to regulate video gaming without eradicating completely. There is room for personal responsibility here.
At the least, it is good to see state officials agree on some type of new revenue stream while the Illinois budget is awash in red ink. Coles County communities should not do as some in the state are doing and opt out of the gaming law. If cities opt out of video gambling, they should also be barred from getting the construction funds the program generates. Local and state authorities alike should welcome regulation for — and revenue from — an activity already, by and large, occurring on a daily basis.
Let the state registers ring up something positive from this heretofore under-the-table industry.
— JG/T-C Editorial Board
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~STRANGER~ wrote on Oct 3, 2009 3:36 AM: