Thursday, Sept. 9, 1999 | 2:19 a.m.
Automated teller machines would be banned from casino floors under a bill introduced by a Democratic congressman from New York.
Rep. John LaFalce said the proposed legislation follows one of the major recommendations included in a recent report by the National Gambling Impact Study Commission.
"Providing immediate electronic cash transfers not only feeds compulsive behavior, but makes it easier for problem gamblers to bet all their available cash, draw down their bank accounts and then tap into the available credit line of their credit cards as well," he said in a news release.
One of the bill's provisions directs the Federal Reserve to publish and enforce rules ensuring that all electronic transfers of cash and credit are segregated from gambling areas.
LaFalce's legislation is similar to a measure proposed last year by another New York Democrat, Rep. Jerrold Nadler. Nadler's amendment never made it to the House floor for a vote.
"Nadler did not have much luck in the past, and nothing really has changed since then," said Wayne Mehl, a Washington lobbyist for the Nevada Resort Association.
"We continue to believe that ATMs in Las Vegas casinos are primarily used by customers for nongaming activities such as entertainment, retail (shopping) and food," Mehl said. "We are not aware of anyone using ATMs to induce people to gamble."
Rep. Jim Gibbons, R-Nev., said LaFalce's bill is evidence that "there are just as many anti-gaming Democrats as anti-gaming Republicans."
Rep. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev., said she wanted to talk to LaFalce before commenting on the legislation.
Earlier this year, Berkley helped persuade Nadler not to reintroduce his ATM bill.
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