 The public is invited to attend this meeting and speak out on the
issue if they so choose. In order to be recognized on the floor,
those who wish to speak will need to fill out a guest speaker form
provided at the beginning of the meeting, and they should plan on
keeping their comments to a length of no more than five minutes.
At the last committee-of-the-whole meeting of the council,
Alderman Tom O'Donohue had asked that aldermen come prepared to
discuss the issue this week.
Currently there are a number of establishments in Lincoln that
have video gaming machines labeled as "for entertainment purposes
only."
In 2009 the Illinois Legislature passed new laws regarding video
gaming. The new law establishes gaming with a cash payout to winners
and will require that new state-approved machines replace those that
currently exist. With this law, the old machines would be made
illegal and would have to be removed from businesses.
The new machines were slated to be put into place last year, but
complications on a state level have delayed that. The state is now
anticipating that the new machines will be available sometime in
mid- to late summer this year.
Rebecca Van Nydeggen, Salvation Army director in Logan County,
addressed the council at Tuesday night's committee-of-the-whole
meeting, speaking out against this form of legalized gambling.
Included in her presentation was a seven-page handout that
offered a great deal of information regarding the economic impact of
gambling on families.
She said that problem gambling affects home life on a personal
and financial level, and those effects become a financial problem
for municipalities as well as community service agencies such as
Salvation Army.
She noted that the cost to the community would come from lost
revenue, lost taxes, loss of jobs and productivity, increased costs
in law enforcement, increased social costs, and irreplaceable funds
due to bankruptcy, theft or embezzlement.
Van Nydeggen noted that statistically it is inevitable that some
consumers will become problem gamblers as a result of these new
machines.
She noted that with a population 15,369, based on the 2000
census, there are approximately 11,473 people in the city of Lincoln
who are of legal age. She said that if even 4 percent of the
population developed a gambling problem, it would equal 459 people.
She noted the following cost statistics per person:
-
Criminal costs --
the cost to apprehend, adjudicate and incarcerate, rehabilitate,
plus the cost of added police officers for enforcement: $3,998.
-
Business and
employment -- the cost of lost productivity, lost time and
unemployment, and the cost of using sick days off for gambling:
$3,995.
-
Abused dollars --
money obtained from family, friends and employers under false
pretenses: $3,834.
-
Illness -- the
cost of treatment for gambling-related sicknesses such as
depression, stress, cardiovascular disorders, headaches and
more: $700.
-
Social services --
government costs for therapy, unemployment and other social
services, including welfare and food stamps: $631.
-
Bankruptcy --
lawsuits, legal costs and bill collection: $316.
-
Family costs -- costs related to
divorce separation, spousal abuse and child neglect: $111.
Based on these figures, which were provided from a study
conducted at the University of Buffalo's Research Institute on
Addictions, this comes to a total of $13,586 per person.
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Van Nydeggen said that with only 459 individuals becoming problem
gamblers, the economic impact through these various categories would
add up to $6,235,974.
She also noted that if the 4 percent were applied to the
population of the entire county, the result would be 973 problem
gamblers and the economic impact would jump to $13,219,178. She said
that the countywide impact was important to the city because the
majority of Logan County residents work and spend in Lincoln.
Van Nydeggen closed by saying: "I can tell you with an annual
budget of less than $100,000 for direct assistance in Logan County,
there is no way that The Salvation Army or any other benevolence
agency in the county can absorb a cost of $6,000,000. I encourage
you to ban this in every jurisdiction that we possibly can."
During the discussion of this topic Mayor Keith Snyder said that
an ordinance to ban has been drafted and the city has the option to
ban or do nothing.
According to state law, municipalities may pass a ban on the new
machines, or they may do nothing. Doing nothing would be equal to
agreeing to have legalized gambling in the city.
Snyder suggested that the council might wish to take this to a
committee or perhaps have a public hearing on the issue.
O'Donohue said he'd be in favor of a public hearing. He said that
in council chambers some have already come forth speaking out
against the issue, but on the streets of the city he personally has
heard more from people who want the gambling. He said he thought the
council should hear from the public as well as the businesses that
will be affected by the decision.
Alderman Buzz Busby asked about whether the existing machines
could stay in local businesses after the new machines are banned,
and the answer from attorney Bill Bates and O'Donohue was no. The
machines have annual permits, and once the 2010-11 permit expires,
those machines will have to be removed if the new ones are
available.
Busby then reminded the council that losing what exists now will
mean a loss of $24,000 per year in revenues for the city.
Alderwoman Melody Anderson also spoke up, saying that she was in
favor of a hearing. She noted that over the last year, a handful of
people have come forward to speak on the issue, with only one being
in favor and the rest opposed. She said she felt like the public had
a right to be heard on the issue.
In the end, it was agreed to have a hearing on Feb. 22. The
meeting will begin at 6 p.m. and last for one hour, as that will
also be a regular voting session night for the council.
It was also noted that if the turnout for the hearing is large
and not everyone gets the opportunity to speak, a second hearing
could be called. That will be determined on Feb. 22 based on public
participation.
[By NILA SMITH]
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