Columnist Jeff German: Hope for problem gamblers

Tuesday, Jan. 25, 2005 | 11:01 a.m.

Buried deep in Gov. Kenny Guinn's proposed $5.7 billion budget for the next two years is $200,000 to start a treatment fund for problem gamblers.

The casino industry has agreed to provide $200,000 in matching monies.

This will hardly make a dent in the effort to bring relief to the tens of thousands of addicted gamblers in this state.

But, believe it or not, it is history in the making for Nevada.

It is the first time since gambling was legalized 74 years ago that the state and its No. 1 industry have recognized they have a social obligation to help those whose lives gambling has ruined.

Guinn actually mentioned the phrase "problem gambling" in his State of the State address Monday night.

If the Legislature ultimately approves money to treat problem gamblers, it will be a day worthy of being declared a state holiday.

"It's huge to have that foot in the door," says Dr. Rob Hunter, a clinical psychologist who runs the Problem Gambling Center, the only private treatment facility for addicted gamblers in Las Vegas.

But it really is a small crack that has been opened.

Veteran Sen. Randolph Townsend, R-Reno, who is among those leading the charge on behalf of addicted gamblers, says he believes the Legislature will "bump it up more" in the coming weeks.

Studies, Townsend says, have shown that $2 million is needed to start a treatment fund.

It will be difficult to persuade lawmakers to pour that much taxpayer money into the fund, especially with so many other social needs to address in fast-growing Nevada.

But the $2 million goal can be reached with the help of private funding from the cash-rich casino industry.

For that to happen, however, the industry's days of turning record profit and turning its back on the shattered souls left behind must come to an end.

The industry, dare I say it, will have to start acting responsibly.

"Sometimes you need to stand in front of the mirror and look at yourself and ask what you can do to fix the problem," says local developer Ken Templeton, who chairs the Problem Gambling Center's board. "But the gaming industry hasn't been willing to do that."

That's because the industry hasn't been ready to admit that it created this problem.

The good thing about Guinn's proposal is that, despite the miniscule amount of start-up money recommended for the fund, someone finally is shining a light on what's really happening here.

In the coming weeks state lawmakers and the public will have a chance to further the debate and put the industry under scrutiny at a time when it is enjoying much prosperity.

"Everything is off the charts for them," Templeton says. "But for the people who are out on the streets who've lost their homes, their cars, their jobs and their families, there's nothing for them.

"That has to change."

And so it will -- if we keep the light shining.