Facebook
Fark
Digg
Reddit
StumbleGaming board: No more ‘tolerance’ with Vegas company
Friday, June 5, 2009 | 3:41 p.m.
CARSON CITY – A Las Vegas company that operates in 12 states and 38 Indian reservations is on thin ice with the Nevada Gaming Control Board.
Board Chairman Dennis Neilander says it has been “pretty tolerant” in the past in dealing with Las Vegas Gaming Inc., a publicly traded corporation with Nevada manufacturing and distributing licenses. Neilander warned: “There is going to be zero future tolerance. I’m at the end of my rope.”
His remarks were made Wednesday during the board’s consideration of the licensing of Jon D. Berkley, the president and chief executive officer. But Nielander said his complaints were not directed at Berkley but at the company.
The board has filed two complaints against the company in the past two years and has also issued two show cause orders, which are confidential.
Neilander said Berkley was suitable for licensing. “He has made mistakes but they were unintentional.” He apparently left some information off his application. Berkley apparently was brought in to get the company on the straight path.
State audits of the company found it failed to do background checks of new hires. In complying with state regulations, Neilander said weaknesses exist in every category.
Berkley said he understood the need for compliance and it was crucial to the survival of the industry. He said changes have been made. The director of compliance has been let go and the company is being downsized.
Neilander said once the company is notified of deficiencies “it jumps right on it.”
Anthony Cabot, attorney for the firm, said Berkley has brought in two gaming control board employees to help straighten out the mistakes. Berkley acknowledged there were “great holes” in the company’s compliance efforts.
Cabot said Berkley made some mistakes in his application but he is a “law-abiding citizen” and has substantial experience from a tech company. He said Berkley, in taking over the company, “jumped in with both feet but didn’t realize how deep the water was.” And there were sharks in the water, Cabot added.
In 2007, the company paid a $30,000 fine for issuing a false press release. The company described itself as the operator of Nevada Numbers, a lottery-style keno game. The complaint said that misled the public because lotteries are prohibited by the Nevada Constitution. The board cautioned the company on four occasions not to mislead the public into thinking Nevada Numbers was a lottery.
The complaint by the board said the company, in its press release, also said it had entered into a joint venture agreement with Golden Pond when it had not.
This year, the company was fined $10,000 on a complaint that its bankroll twice fell below the required minimum.
It is not clear whether the two show-cause orders might result in disciplinary action.
Berkley said the company has been a supplier of bingo games and keno systems and it operates Nevada Numbers and Million Dollar Ticket. In recent years, he said Las Vegas Gaming has been focused on deploying a software delivery system that turns a slot machine into a multi-functional unit. Beyond the game, the system offers beverage on demand, videos and audio, restaurant reservations and other services.
Neilander said the company has had financial struggles for “some time.” Berkley said it has acquired $500,000 but conceded “we do require additional capital.”
The board recommended approval for Berkley and the state Gaming Commission will take final action on his license application on June 18.
The board also recommended approval for four men to hold a 33 percent interest in Casino MonteLago in Henderson. They had loaned money to the company and are now converting it to an interest in the casino.
Steve M. Rittvo will hold 12.3 percent; Stephen Szapor Jr. will have 13.6 percent; Scott Fisher will hold 4.3 percent and Ernest E. D-Ambrosio will own 3 percent.
Discussion: comments so far…
Comments are moderated by Las Vegas Sun editors. Our goal is not to limit the discussion, but rather to elevate it. Comments should be relevant and contain no abusive language. Comments that are off-topic, vulgar, profane or include personal attacks will be removed. Full comments policy. Additionally, we now display comments from trusted commenters by default. Those wishing to become a trusted commenter need to verify their identity or sign in with Facebook Connect to tie their Facebook account to their Las Vegas Sun account. For more on this change, read our story about how it works and why we did it.
Only trusted comments are displayed on this page. Untrusted comments have expired from this story.
No trusted comments have been posted.
Post a comment
Most Popular
- Viewed
- Discussed
- E-mailed
- Photos: Scott Disick celebrates his 29th birthday at 1 OAK in the Mirage
- HOA scandal cuts wide swath across Las Vegas Valley
- Man suffers bullet wound when stopping burglary attempt
- Photos: Surrender’s 2nd anniversary with Skrillex, ‘Le Reve,’ Paris and Floyd
- Nearly 40,000 have voted early in Clark County
Everything Under the Sun
Blogs
The Kats Report
With Shenandoah project stalled, Wayne Newton hits back legally (7 Comments)
Las Vegas Philharmonic says search for new music director to begin 'immediately' (1 Comment)
Where does a Playmate play when she turns 21? Vegas! (3 Comments)
Ice Ice Billy
The road to six-toed cats and Mayor Bubba
The Kats Report
David Itkin tells L.V. Philharmonic officials he's on his way out (14 Comments)
Diamond Dave sells it well as Van Halen pours out the power at MGM Grand (2 Comments)
Entering debut at Tryst, Nick Hissom is a model for a rapid rise to prominence (3 Comments)
- Locally owned and independent since 1950; Winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service, best news website in the nation & DuPont Award for broadcast journalism
Q: Who needs government in their gambling affairs?
A: No one.
Fines, background checks, regulations, licensing, taxation, corruption.
No thanks.
We all have our own zero tolerances.
"Board Chairman Dennis Neilander ..... warned: "There is going to be zero future tolerance. I'm at the end of my rope."
Neilander is the one who needs the "zero tolerance" warning for even implying he individually has any authority to tell a private citizen or company what to do.
Harley -- again, you're right on!
Harley, killerB
You are uninformed, uneducated, self centered and congratulatory buffoons. You don't understand what the gaming commission is, what it does, what power it has or the public good it serves.
Give us all a break and stop posting your inane comments.
Cronky -- and I can think of a few choice names for you too.
You've shown here not only do you know nothing of where government gets its power, but you are not worth either future respect or attention.
The Gaming Control board is a group of selfserving,bought and controlled supposed investigators and protectors of the integrity of gaming, who infact are pawns of big gaming corporations and special interest groups.
CronkyVoddy You need to come out of your coma and see things for what they really are while resisting the temptation of making a fool of yourself by insulting other's rights to post their opinions.
It allways has been,and allways will be, JUST SHOW ME THE MONEY,AND ALL WILL GO AWAY! This is vegas for gods sake,the odds are allways on the house! Not to mention pad my pocket and its easier on ya too.
Future zero tolerance? What happened to pre-zero tolerance and current zero tolerance? If you continue to tell someone "There may be", they will push and push to see when your head will pop off!!
Who needs government in their gambling affairs?
Are you kidding???!!!
The Nevada standards are high and that's why you have something other than sand to eat.
If you manage to lower the government regulation of this industry to the level of the state of Oklahoma or Missouri, the odds will suck and I might as well go to a riverboat to gamble.
It's too easy to blame the authority figure here. While the present leadership of the board may have issues, the board and the regulated standards are at the loggerhead of Nevada cash flow.
If you have a NEVADA gaming license you are respected from South Africa to Monte Carlo to Jersey, everywhere. It is the world pinnacle.
To suggest dropping government from your gambling would be like suggesting Rolls Royce dropping quality control.
"The Gaming Control board is a group of selfserving,bought and controlled supposed investigators and protectors of the integrity of gaming, who infact are pawns of big gaming corporations and special interest groups.
CronkyVoddy You need to come out of your coma and see things for what they really are while resisting the temptation of making a fool of yourself by insulting other's rights to post their opinions." By homer 6/6/09 at 11:19 a.m
Homer, right on! The Nevada Gaming Control Board is yet another perfect example of the rampant corruption that we face in Nevada. I have a perfect example to share with all of you:
Harrah's Entertainment, Inc for more than a decade illegally remodeled several of their properties - no permits, no inspections...just thousands of unsafe rooms for the public to stay in, "public fire safety traps", which are now documented by both the Clark County Building & Fire Departments. Then toss in the fact that during the course of these illegal remodels Harrah's exposed the construction workers, their employees and their guests to ASBESTOS, a known carcenogenic! Guess where Harrah's disposed of the asbestos - yep, right to the local dump. Harrah's planned these illegal remodels years in advance, which makes it a willful act on their part...do all of you get this: Harrah's Entertainment, Inc. knew exactly what they were doing...willfully putting their Guests & employees at risk, in more than one way! A Nevada Gaming License means that you have greased the right palms, thus assuring yourself protection from prosecution. Harrah's didn't stop with just illegal remodels, and asbestos exposure...if one digs just a little you might find tax evasion, misappropriation of company funds, and who knows what else. If I were looking, I'd take a good look at Gary Loveman, Tom Jenkin, Jan Jones, Don Marrandino, Tom Adams, Mike Whitehead, Mike Nasby, Kirk England, George Kirkwood, Leon Vermillion, and be sure to throw in the rest of Harrah's illustrious Management Team. Don't leave out looking at Harrah's subsidiaries, because you never know what one might find!
The Nevada Gaming Control Board is one huge JOKE, and they rank right up there with the Nevada Medical Board, Nevada OSHA, Nevada Contractors Board, Nevada AG's Office, Governor Dumbo Gibbons & his pal Sig Rogich, Senator Harry Reid, Workman's Comp, Clark County DA David Roger's Office, Clark County Building & Fire Departments...etc...etc...etc - Corruption at its finest!
Yes folks it is true: "what happens in Vegas certainly stays in Vegas."
Re geenab65:
"Future zero tolerance? What happened to pre-zero tolerance and current zero tolerance? If you continue to tell someone "There may be", they will push and push to see when your head will pop off!!"
Very well put! What DID happen to pre-zero tolerance? Just like with a 2 year old, telling them if you do that again, you will be put in a time-out, then you don't do the time-out.. Threats don't work, following through does...