Miller shifts focus to Internet, Indian gaming

Tuesday, Nov. 10, 1998 | 11:04 a.m.

Gov. Bob Miller today urged the National Gambling Impact Study Commission to take a hard look at the "questionable endeavors" of gambling on Indian reservations and the Internet.

In opening remarks to the nine-member panel this morning, Miller touted Nevada's gaming industry as the "most refined" and "the safest in the world.

"When you contrast Internet and Indian gaming with the meticulously-regulated Nevada gaming industry," Miller said, "you'll find you're comparing apples to oranges, or perhaps more appropriately comparing order to chaos. There is no simple parallel."

Miller said the two basically unregulated industries provide no revenues to help support state and local governments and no assistance to civic and social service organizations.

"So if I may offer this commission a suggestion, I would advise you, as a federal entity, to look closely at these questionable endeavors and to give them your full and immediate attention."

Miller's remarks were made as the Washington-based commission opened a two-day hearing, the last of six on the road, at the MGM Grand hotel-casino. The panel will hold hearings in Washington next year to prepare a report of its two-year national study.

The governor told the commission that Nevada's regulators, whom he described as the world's best, conduct themselves with the "utmost professionalism and integrity."

Gaming, Miller said, is "responsible for driving the economic engine" in the state.

The industry contributes $2.2 billion in state, federal and local taxes and employs one-fourth of the workforce, Miller said.

Unemployment in Nevada, he said, ranks among the lowest in the country, while personal income is among the highest.

"Here in Las Vegas men and women can find jobs that pay fair wages and companies that champion the rights of employees and offer comprehensive health benefits," Miller said.

"Here people find affordable homes in safe neighborhoods and diverse civic and cultural organizations. They find in Las Vegas a better quality of life and a wonderful place to live, work and raise their families."

Miller said Las Vegas has more churches, little league teams and Boy Scout and Girl Scout troops per capita than anywhere else in the country.

The governor's remarks followed a hectic Monday in which pro and anti-gaming forces stepped up their activities in anticipation of today's hearing.

Mirage Resorts Chairman Steve Wynn, who declined an invitation to speak to the commission because of scheduling conflicts, met with Commission Chairwoman Kay James over breakfast at the Bellagio.

James and Commissioner James Dobson, the most vocal industry critic on the panel, received an hour-long tour of the Culinary Union's acclaimed training center downtown. The tour was arranged by Commissioner John Wilhelm, the union's international president. The Culinary Union represents more than 48,000 casino workers in Nevada.

On the other side, the industry's critics were busy giving the media their "behind the mirage" tour of Las Vegas, which points out several economically depressed areas of the city in the shadows of the Las Vegas Strip.

Leading the way were the Rev. Tom Grey, executive director of the National Coalition Against Legalized Gambling, and his Las Vegas representative, former City Councilman Steve Miller. Two commissioners, including James, agreed to take the tour.

James, a rising star in the religious right, which is pushing an anti-gaming agenda, also toured the city with Las Vegas Mayor Jan Laverty Jones, who was to testify before the commission today.

Criticism of the panel, meanwhile, remained high on Monday.

Rep. Jim Gibbons, R-Nev., issued a statement saying he believed the commission has failed to put together a balanced agenda this week.

He said he hoped it wasn't "just another case of anti-gaming influence bent on portraying Nevada's gaming industry in a negative light."

Gibbons and the rest of Nevada's congressional delegation were to address the commission today.

The casino industry, meanwhile, opened its anticipated public relations blitz on Monday to highlight the positive aspects of Las Vegas.

The Clark County Bar Association and the Nevada Gaming Attorneys held their first annual Gaming Law Seminar in conjunction with the federal commission meeting.

"Let's not forget that this week, as we get placed under the microscope, we have a lot to be proud of," Harrah's President Hector Mon told the lawyers at the Monte Carlo hotel-casino.

Mon, who chairs the Nevada Resort Association, the political arm of the casino industry here, described Las Vegas as "one of the true success stories" of the 20th Century.

"In less than 50 years, Las Vegas has grown from a sleepy desert town to become the entertainment capital of the world," Mon said. "It has been a tale of ingenuity, creativity and perseverance."

Mon said Nevada tourism now attracts 42 million visitors a year to the state.

"Because of the jobs and low tax environment made possible by the gaming industry, all Nevadans enjoy opportunities and a quality of life matched by few other communities," he said.

At the same time, Mon added, Las Vegas faces a period of "unprecedented challenges."

The city must deal with massive growth on the Strip, as well as across the nation, Mon said.

"Most of us remember the days of just a decade ago, when Las Vegas was virtually alone in the gaming business," he said. "As recently as 1990, some 90 percent of the visits to casinos in the United States took place in the traditional markets of Nevada and New Jersey.

"But now, 30 states have some sort of legalized gaming to compete with us. Today the number of U.S. casino visits to Nevada and New Jersey has dropped to 36 percent."

Mon urged Nevada officials and his colleagues in the industry to "get ready" for the onslaught.

"Whether it's Indian casinos in California, or Detroit, or the Mississippi Gulf Coast, or Atlantic City, more competition is on the way," he said.

Mon said Nevada needs to protect the health of its No. 1 industry by devoting more energy toward economic diversification.

The state, he added, also must be wary of its enemies in Washington, which Mon described as the "other Sin City."

Mon said he hoped Las Vegas would get a "fair and impartial hearing" from the federal commission this week.

"While the jury is out on exactly what actions this commission may take, it is clear that certain commission members have shown a bias," he said.

The Harrah's boss said the industry has made great strides within the last year in heightening awareness of problem gambling, which has attracted much interest nationwide from the commission.

"We in the industry are prepared to continue our support of research, education and treatment," Mon said. "But we should not allow problem gambling to become a cloud that casts a dark shadow on the entire industry, nor should we allow our opponents to use this issue as a rationale to punish us or to impede the public's freedom to use our product."

Frank Fahrenkopf, president of the Washington-based American Gaming Association, told the lawyers he believes compulsive gambling will be at "the heart" of the commission's recommendations to Congress and the president next year.

"Hopefully, they'll commend our industry for being at the cutting edge of problem gambling," he said.

Fahrenkopf said he expected the commission will recommend states set aside portions of their gaming taxes to help treat addictive gamblers.

In the meantime, Fahrenkopf said, last week's elections across the country demonstrated that Americans don't like to hear preaching about the evils of gambling.

The industry prevailed in several ballot initiatives and races where gaming was made an issue, he said.

Fahrenkopf said the roots of the moral opposition to gaming, which primarily comes from Methodists, date back to the Revolutionary War more than 200 years ago. The moral arguments, he said, aren't holding up.

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