No changes expected in state’s gambling laws in coming year

Saturday, Dec. 25, 1999 | 11:30 a.m.

State voters approved gambling on the Missouri and Mississippi rivers in 1992, and the first boats began appearing a few years later.

As 2000 arrives, there are 15 casino boats statewide on the two rivers; sometime in the new year, the first gambling boat in mid-Missouri is scheduled to open at Boonville.

Besides making money for riverboat operators, the casinos generate millions of dollars annually for Missouri education. For the budget year that ended June 30, 1999, more than $161 million was allocated for schools - up from about $800,000 in 1994.

For the casino industry, a priority remains ending the $500 loss limit on each two-hour "cruise."

The Missouri Gaming Commission has said in annual reports to the Legislature that the loss limit makes riverboats less competitive with boats in neighboring Illinois. But the commission hasn't taken any vote to get rid of the limits, saying that's the Legislature's role.

Past efforts to drop the loss limits, which were approved by voters in the 1992 riverboat legalization, have flopped in the statehouse.

Still, Rep. May Scheve, D-Grantwood Village, has filed legislation for the session that begins Jan. 5 to abolish the loss limit.

Can it pass? "I wouldn't bet on it," Scheve said.

Earlier this year, the Gaming Commission decided to experiment with temporarily lifting the two-hour boarding restriction on gamblers. Prior to that, Missouri casinos could only allow boarding for 45 minutes every two hours. Now, gamblers can come aboard any time.

The last big legislative push on gambling came last year, when Senate Majority Leader Ronnie DePasco, D-Kansas City, had a proposal to encourage development of pari-mutuel horse racing. The measure died.

DePasco, who has no plans to revive the legislation, said it's time to take stock of legalized gambling in Missouri rather than moving toward expansion.

"I think gaming is still in its infancy in Missouri. We're approaching everything really slow," DePasco said. "I think there's probably enough gaming in Missouri to last a long, long time. We have the lottery, bingo and casino gaming. That's enough. Maybe too much."

Lawmakers passed a bill last year that would have allowed children playing arcade games with tokens to win prizes valued at up to $250. The bill was popularly known as the "Chuck E. Cheese" proposal, named after the children's pizza arcades.

But Gov. Mel Carnahan vetoed the bill at the urging of the Gaming Commission. The governor said the bill could lead to an expansion of legalized gambling.

There are some gambling issues lawmakers want to address in 2000.

Senate Republican Leader Steve Ehlmann of St. Charles has filed legislation banning casinos from offering day-care centers for customers. His bill would also subject on-premises day-care centers for casino employees to Missouri Department of Health review and approval.

Riverport Casino Center in Maryland Heights and Station Casino in Kansas City both offer day-care for customers' children.

Ehlmann said it's also time to look back at the promises made by the gambling industry to make the casinos, now awash in neon and elaborate land-based facilities, resemble old-time Missouri riverboats while promoting tourism.

"I think there's a lot of people who have the idea of slowing down and catching their breath," Ehlmann said. "I definitely think that and I'm one of those people who is still waiting for promises made eight years ago to be fulfilled."

Steve Taylor, executive director of Casino Watch, an industry watchdog, said a review of Missouri's gambling industry is overdue.

"This is a high-risk activity and we have to decide how much should the state be involved in this high-risk activity," Taylor said.