****ACTION ALERT–TRACKS PUSH LEGISLATION FOR ONLINE GAMBLING****
Dear Friends,
HB 213 is scheduled to be heard in House Business and Industry Committee today (Thursday), and SB 167, the twin Senate bill, is scheduled to be heard in Senate Corporation and Transportation bill tomorrow, as well. Both bills would allow a gambler to place a bet on a live horse race or a simulcast race using a deposit wagering account in ANY location using telephonic or electronic (read Internet) media. Simulcast races from across the entire U.S. are available to New Mexico tracks throughout the day. Current Racetrack Commission rules for deposit wagering limit the places where the bets can be made to a self-service terminal provided by the track, or by phone inside the track facility. Allowing electronic media to transmit the bet from any location would certainly be a big enough umbrella to cover Online betting, a massive expansion beyond current racetrack commission rules.
Online gambling is currently illegal in New Mexico, and HB 213 or SB 167 would be the introduction, the first step, toward full-blown casino-style Online gambling. It is quite likely that this would violate the state/tribal gambling compacts.
Even if this form of gambling were limited to telephonic betting, it would still significantly expand access to gambling, and increase the addictiveness of the product. But expanding it to Online gambling would be an enormous expansion of gambling and gambling addiction.
Studies at the University of Connecticut, USA, and the University of Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada, have reported gambling addiction rates much higher than any other form of gambling. The U.C. study said that if you gamble regularly Online you will become addicted. If this bill leads us to Online gambling, it would be available to every laptop, desktop, tablet, and smartphone in New Mexico. And think how skillful teenagers are at getting around barriers and obstacles.
We need to contact the members of the House Business and Industry Committee to get them to vote against HB 213, and the Senate Corporation and Transportation Committee and encourage them to vote against SB 167. Personal contacts are the best contact, followed by telephone contact, followed by fax, followed by email, in order of effectiveness. Most contacts should be by phone. If a committee member is your representative, it is especially important to contact him/her, but all contacts are important.
When you call their office, usually you will have to leave a message with their secretary. Be polite and patient. You don’t have to sound like an expert on the bill. Use your own words to say why you want the legislator to vote against the bill. You might mention that you think Online expansion of racetrack gambling is a terrible idea because it would allow people to gamble from their laptops, their tablets and smartphones. Use whatever argument you feel would point to the danger of these bills.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR HELP!!
Dr. Guy Clark, chairman
Stop Predatory Gambling New Mexico
Contact information for these legislators can be found below. Click on the legislator’s name and their website with contact information will appear. Please call or contact them today or tomorrow morning. I went through all of Business and Industry in about 25 minutes with a short message. Please Forward this email to any appropriate email list.
HOUSE BUSINESS AND INDUSTRY COMMITTEE:
Debbie Rodella
Patricio Ruiloba
Alonzo Baldonado
Bealquin Bill Gomez
Yvette Herrell
Derrick J. Lente
Tim D. Lewis
Jane E. Powdrell-Culbert
Carl Trujillo
Jim R. Trujillo
Monica Youngblood
SENATE CORPORATION AND TRANSPORTATION COMMITTEE:
Clemente Sanchez
Benny Shendo, Jr.
Michael Padilla
Mary Kay Papen
Bill Tallman
James P. White
Pat Woods
William E. Sharer