State Casino Gambling Funds to Help Problem Gamblers

Congressman Martin Meehan, concerned with the social consequences of problem gambling across the United States, says he will favor gambling laws requiring states to save at least one percent of their casino gambling revenues for prevention and treatment.

The Congressman said he was shocked to learn in a recent US survey that less than 1/5 of 1 percent of gambling taxes are used to deter problem gambling and help those suffering from it.

"What's stunning is the amount of casino gambling revenue states get from it, and the lack of any kind of commitment to problem gambling," said Meehan, a six-term Democratic congressman from Massachusetts known nationally for campaign finance reform.

"This is a growing public-health problem that has been largely ignored with the expansion of legal gambling in this country. People I've talked to say it's more devastating in many respects than alcohol or drugs because it leads to complete financial ruin."

The national survey discovered that the fourty-eight states with legal gambling collected $21 billion in revenue from it last year, but spent only $36 million on treatment and prevention programs.

The survey was done by Community Newspaper Holdings Inc., a Birmingham, Ala. based news company and parent corporation for Eagle-Tribune newspapers. It also showed that gamblers wagered $136 billion on lottery tickets and at gambling casinos, racinos, racetracks and video poker parlors in 2005.

July 10, 2006
Posted By Terry Goodwin
Staff Editor, CasinoGamblingWeb.com    Previous Page | Internet Gambling | Top Online Casinos | Submit News!

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