by Eric Carlson
Daily Lobo columnist
This weekend, I sat at a blackjack table with a man as he gambled away his entire paycheck. I also watched an older man leave with a prostitute and observed a desperate woman who passed out with her hand on the pull lever of a slot machine.
Twenty years ago, I would have needed to go to Nevada or Atlantic City, N.J. to see these things, but they are right around the corner from my Albuquerque home.
In 1988, the federal government passed the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, legislation making gambling on reservations possible. Since then, the industry has grown from a small cluster of bingo halls to include more than 400 modern casinos in 28 states.
American Indian gaming took in $18.5 billion in revenue in 2004, three times more than Starbucks. New Mexico has 16 casinos operating under the act.
The Indian Gaming Act has been heralded as the single most influential piece of legislation to improve the lives of Americans Indians. The exorbitant revenue casinos generate is reportedly supporting education programs, cultural preservation, economic development, health care and housing projects on reservations.
The casinos have created 553,000 jobs, filled by American Indians and others.
Along with jobs and revenue, however, casinos also produce or enable gambling addictions, organized crime, prostitution, personal bankruptcy and wastefulness. The social ills related to gambling are well-documented and numerous.
The New Mexico Survey of Gambling Behavior reports that the prevalence of serious gambling-related problems increases significantly with decreasing income, leaving more of those afflicted reliant on government aid.
The same study shows 12 percent of people with income less than $10,000 admitted to serious problems relating to gambling, a much higher percentage than other socioeconomic classes.
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Earl Grinols, a University of Illinois economist, estimates that casinos earn more than half their revenue from problem and pathological gamblers.
These statistics suggest a large portion of gaming revenue comes from impoverished members of our community who cannot afford such costly entertainment but also don't know how to quit. Social problems can only increase as casinos become more accessible.
Tribal leaders met last week with governors from 18 western states to discuss the future of American Indian gaming.
The group discussed possible changes to the 1988 federal law that regulates American Indian gaming. The most controversial proposal would allow tribes to own and operate off-reservation gambling establishments. The mere suggestion of allowing off-reservation casinos has sent tribes hunting for prime real estate near large urban centers.
The prospect of unrestricted gaming, American Indian or otherwise, is daunting. Casinos would be in every city in America if tribes and pueblos were allowed to lease land for gambling.
It is appropriate for American politicians to search for ways to improve living conditions on reservations, but it is unjust and imprudent to give tribes monopolistic control over a product that is detrimental to society. There are reasons most forms of gambling are illegal in most states. Gambling has no place in prosperous, productive, civil life.
Governors from states with large American Indian communities such as Colorado and South Dakota are against liberalizing casino laws, but state governments are virtually powerless when it comes to reservation policy. Tribes are legally sovereign nations and can thus be dealt with only by the federal government.
The House Resources Committee has assumed the lead role concerning gaming at the federal level, and chairman Richard Pombo has expressed his desire to limit any significant expansion of off-reservation gaming. Ultimately, any changes to the law must be made by Congress.
Poverty and unemployment are very serious problems on New Mexico's reservations, but expanding casinos will not change the situation enough to warrant the resulting social costs.
Like it or not, American Indian gaming has found a place in our communities. By limiting expansion and eliminating off-reservation casinos, however, we can help mitigate the undesirable social consequences.
