45th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - second session, 2002

REQUESTING A MORATORIUM ON EXPANDING GAMBLING IN NEW MEXICO.

WHEREAS, congress created the national gambling impact study commission in 1997; and

WHEREAS, the commission reported its recommendations in 1999; and

WHEREAS, the commission's recommendations were in the areas of gambling regulation, problem and pathological gambling, internet gambling, Native American tribal gambling, gambling's impact on people and places and the need for research; and

WHEREAS, several recommendations were relevant to New Mexico's circumstances, including these numbered recommendations:

". . . 3-12 . . . that states refuse to allow the introduction of casino-style gambling into pari-mutuel facilities for the primary purpose of saving a pari-mutuel facility that the market has determined no longer serves the community or for the purpose of competing with other forms of gambling. . . .

3-16 . . . states and tribal governments should conduct periodic reassessments of the various forms of gambling permitted within their borders for the purpose of determining whether the public interest would be better served by limiting, eliminating, or expanding one or more of those forms. . . .

3-18 . . . jurisdictions considering the introduction of new forms of gambling or the significant expansion of existing gambling operations should sponsor comprehensive Gambling Impact statements. Such analyses should be conducted by qualified independent research organizations and should encompass, insofar as possible, the economic, social, and regional effects of the proposed action. . . .

7-4 . . . that when considering the legalization of gambling or the repeal of gambling that is already legal, they [state and local governments] should recognize that lotteries, Internet gambling, and non-casino EGDs do not create a concentration of good quality jobs and do not generate significant economic development. . . .

8-20 . . . that [the state consider] authorizing research to collect and analyze data that would assess the following gambling-related effects on customers and their families resident in [its] jurisdictions:

-- The extent to which gambling-related debt is a contributing factor to personal bankruptcies.

-- The extent to which gambling problems contribute to divorce, domestic violence, and child abuse and neglect.

-- The extent to which gambling problems contribute to incidents of suicide (or suicidal behaviors).

-- The number, types, and average monetary values of gambling-related crimes perpetrated for the primary purpose of gaining funds to continue gambling or to pay gambling

debts. . . ."; and

WHEREAS, the commission concluded that there is a need for a "pause" in the growth of gambling, to allow governments to survey the results of their decisions and determine if they have chosen wisely; and

WHEREAS, the commission's report ended with the following quote:

". . . policymakers may wish to impose an explicit moratorium on gambling expansion while awaiting further research and assessment."; and

WHEREAS, a moratorium is an eminently reasonable response to the many questions about the social benefits and consequences of expanded gambling; and

WHEREAS, state and local government policymakers cannot make good public policy decisions without adequate information, and there has been very little research conducted in New Mexico on the social costs of gambling; and

WHEREAS, until that research is done, the state must act responsibly and limit gambling in the state;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the state racing commission be requested to initiate a moratorium on licensing any new race tracks in the state; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the moratorium be in effect until the national institutes of health convene a multidisciplinary advisory panel to establish research frameworks and appropriate objective research has been conducted on the costs and benefits of gambling in New Mexico so that policymakers are able to judge if gambling is in accord with the public good, if harmful effects are remediable and if the cost-benefit ratio is acceptable; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the state racing commission, the governor and the attorney general.