In 1951, Congress enacted the Transportation of Gambling Devices Act. The Act, more commonly known as the Johnson Act, has been amended several times during the intervening years. Most notably, the Act makes it unlawful to knowingly transport a gambling device to a state where such a device is prohibited by law.
Fact Sheets
Foxwoods Casino Targets Repeat Gamblers
We know from Wall Street Journal reporter Christina Binkley that casinos make 90% of their profits from 10% of their customers. So, it’s no surprise that Connecticut’s Foxwoods Casino has developed a new business strategy to entice it’s “loyal” customers to gamble more of their money away, particularly those “customers living within 90 minutes of the…property.”
Mayor Testifies Foxwoods Casino Has Not Brought Economic Benefits to Town
The former mayor of Ledyard, Connecticut, Wesley Johnson, testified his town has not seen any positive economic impact since the Foxwoods Casino was built there. “There has been no economic development spin-off from the casino. Businesses do not come here,” Johnson said.
Timeline of Predatory Gambling
| 1931 | The legalization of casino gambling in Las Vegas kick starts the modern era of predatory gambling in America. | ||
| 1950 | Senate investigative commitee spotlights links between organized crime, gambling. | ||
| 1964 | New Hampshire becomes the first state to create a state-owned lottery making the partnership between state government and predatory gambling official. | ||
| 1975 | Just over a decade after New Hampshire created the first state-owned lottery, there are lotteries in 12 states: New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Michigan, Maryland, Ohio, Illinois, Maine, Rhode Island, and Delaware | ||
| 1976 | New Jersey approves casino gambling in Atlantic City, marking the first expansion of legal casino gambling outside of Nevada in the modern predatory gambling era. | ||
| 1980 | American Psychiatric Association recognizes pathological gambling as mental disorder. | ||
| 1986 | The first multi-state lottery game, Lotto America, begins operation with six participating states and the District of Columbia. In 1992, the game would be renamed “Powerball.” | ||
| 1988 | The Indian Gaming Regulatory Act is passed by Congress, allowing federally recognized tribes to operate all types of games not forbidden by state law. This leads to one of the largest expansions of predatory gambling in the history of the U.S. To date, 28 states have Indian tribes operating full casinos. | ||
| 1989 | South Dakota becomes just the third state to allow non-tribal commercial casino gambling, as well as the first to legalize VLTs to be placed at various locations around the state. | ||
| 1989 | In response to tribal casinos, Iowa legalizes “limited” riverboat gambling. And then in a border war response, Illinois, Mississippi, Louisiana, Missouri and Indiana all legalize riverboat gambling by 1993, and most “limits” are dropped. | ||
| 1990 | Colorado legalizes limited stake casino gambling in the historic communities of Blackhawk, Cripple Creek, and Central City in an effort to “preserve and revitalize” the historic sites. | ||
| 1991 | Minnesota signs contracts with 11 Indian tribes allowing them to own and operate full scale casinos. Today there are 18 tribal casinos in operation in Minnesota | ||
| 1992 | Rhode Island becomes the first state to legalize slot machines at race tracks, creating the first “racino.” | ||
| 1994 | National Coalition Against Legalized Gambling founded; reorganized in 2008 as Stop Predatory Gambling. | ||
| 1994 | Thirty years after New Hampshire debuts the first state-owned lottery, 36 states and the District of Columbia operate their own state lotteries. | ||
| 1994 | Delaware, Iowa, Louisiana and West Virginia all legalize racinos, bringing the total states with legal racinos to 5. | ||
| 1994 | South Dakota approves 9 tribal casinos | ||
| 1995 | Kansas legislature approves compacts with four Indian tribes to operate casinos on tribal lands. | ||
| 1996 | A second multi-state lottery game begins operation. Titled “The Big Game,” it begins with six member states. In 2002, the game is renamed “Mega Millions.” | ||
| 1996 | Supreme Court rules that tribes cannot sue state governments for damages for refusing to negotiate gambling compacts. | ||
| 1999 | Michigan opens its first commercial casino in Detroit, bringing the number of states with non-tribal commercial casinos to 11. | ||
| 1999 | California signs a compact with 61 Indian tribes, allowing them to own and operate casinos. Today, there are 58 tribal casinos operating in the state of California. | ||
| 1999 | National Gambling Impact Study Commission calls for rollback in “convenience” gambling; recommendations not acted on. | ||
| 2002 | Macau permits privately owned casinos; surpasses Las Vegas as world’s biggest gambling center by 2007. | ||
| 2006 | Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act prohibits use of credit cards or online payment systems for Internet gambling in United States.” | 2006 | Florida and Pennsylvania open their first racinos; Pennsylvania also opens its first casinos becoming the 12th state to allow non-tribal commercial casinos. |
| 2007 | Kansas legislature approves licenses for four commercial casinos to be owned and operated by the state. | ||
| 2008 | Racinos open in Indiana, bringing the number of states with racinos to 12. | ||
| 2008 | Maryland approves 15,000 slots to be operated at 5 different locations across the state. | ||
| 2009 | Arkansas is the latest state to begin operating a state-owned lottery. With Arkansas included, the number of states operating either their own state-owned lottery or one of the two multi-state lottery games reaches 44 (including the District of Columbia). | ||
| 2009 | Despite rejecting four previous attempts to allow casino gambling in the state since 1990, yet another referendum was put before Ohio voters. This time, after a $50 million advertising campaign by predatory gambling interests heralding the “new jobs” and “education funding” casino gambling would create, the voters approved the proposition by a narrow margin. “Issue 3” allows for casinos to be built in each of the four major Ohio cities: Cincinnati, Toledo, Cleveland and Columbus, making Ohio the 39th state to allow casino style gambling. | ||
| 2011 | After spending more than $20 million on lobbying over the prior ten years, casino interests push through a bill allowing casinos in Massachusetts. | ||
| 2011 | The U.S. Department of Justice released a highly-controversial opinion – on the day much of the country was preparing for the Christmas holiday even though the ruling was completed in September- that said the Wire Act of 1961 prohibiting wagering over telecommunications systems that cross state or national borders does not prevent states from using the Internet to sell lottery tickets to adults within their own borders. The opinion reversed the DOJ’s long-held opposition to many forms of Internet gambling and removed a big legal obstacle for states desperate to sanction online gambling to collect more revenue. | ||
| 2012 | Illinois, a state on the verge of bankruptcy, becomes the first to legalize web-based lottery sales which some predict will soon lead other states to follow suit. | ||
| 2013 | New Jersey, Delaware and Nevada partner with gambling interests to sponsor and promote internet gambling to the citizens of their own states. |
Natasha Schull writes about the design and technology behind electronic gambling machines in Washington Post
MIT Professor Natasha Schull writes about the design and technology behind electronic gambling machines in this must-read Washington Post essay.
Why the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act was needed and what it does
An excellent Powerpoint summary on the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 (UIGEA) focusing on why it was needed and what it does.