Report: Nearly 50,000 Arkansans Have Gambling Problem

Arkansas Lottery, ,

Poker_cards_and_chipsRecently we wrote about the Arkansas Lottery’s financial figures for the month of April, and how the Arkansas Lottery–once again–spent a pathetic percentage of its gross revenue on college scholarships.

While the Arkansas Lottery may not be contributing heavily to education, some believe it may be contributing heavily to a serious problem: Gambling addiction.

The National Council on Problem Gambling released a report late last year estimating that as many as 1 in 45 Arkansas adults (2.2% of the adult population in Arkansas) suffers from problem gambling. That is nearly 50,000 adults statewide.

The report notes,

When this lottery was set up in 2009, legislators set aside $200,000 annually for problem gambling treatment and education. In early 2015 legislators eliminated this funding, resulting in Arkansas being one of only 12 U.S. states that does not provide dedicated funding for problem gambling services.

An estimated 2.2% of Arkansas adult residents (49,728 citizens) are believed to manifest a gambling disorder (1 in every 45 adults). Gambling disorders carry widespread physical, social and financial consequences for individuals, their families and communities. These preventable problems result in millions of dollars each year spent on health care, criminal justice and social welfare systems. In addition to these measureable costs, the human costs are immeasurable. . . . .

In 2013, Arkansas ranked near the bottom of states with dedicated problem gambling service funding (ranked 30th out of 39 states with funding designated for problem gambling services). As a result of 2015 legislative action, Arkansas now ranks last with $0 public funds to prevent or treat gambling addiction.

When the Arkansas Legislature first directed the Lottery to pay $200,000 each year for a problem gambling helpline, our concern was $200,000 might not be enough money fund an adequate problem gambling program.

Helping people with gambling problems requires much more than simply answering a telephone; it’s about providing support and resources necessary to help people overcome their gambling addictions. That’s why it was so troubling to see the Arkansas Legislature cut off funding for the helpline last year.

I’m sure gambling in Hot Springs and West Memphis is contributing to Arkansans’ gambling addictions. But since the State of Arkansas entices people to gamble through the Arkansas Lottery, the State of Arkansas has a responsibility to ensure Arkansans are not being harmed by government-run gambling.

One way to do that is to reinstate funding for services designed to help people who suffer from gambling disorders–like the problem gambling help line.

You can read the NCPG’s full report here.

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Little Rock Port Authority Considers Memo of Understanding with Quapaw Tribe

Current Events, , ,

Skyline_of_Little_Rock,_Arkansas_-_20050319The Quapaw Tribe of Oklahoma is working to move property it owns just east of Little Rock into federal trust. Moving the land into federal trust would essentially turn the property into federal land held by the U.S. government in trust for the Quapaw Tribe.

There are provisions in federal law that might make it possible for the Quapaw to open gambling establishments on the property once it is moved into federal trust. Moreover, once the land goes into federal trust, the State of Arkansas, Pulaski County, and the City of Little Rock all lose most of their ability to tax or manage the property; how the property is developed or used becomes a matter that rests largely between the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Quapaw Tribe.

Recently it was announced the Little Rock Port Authority–which is adjacent to the Quapaw Tribe’s property–is considering signing a memo of understanding with the tribe that, among other things, might effectively prevent the tribe from developing a casino on the property. However if the land is moved into federal trust, that memo arguably will not have any force of law.

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Poverty Levels Above Average in AR, OK, MS Counties with Casinos

1 CommentGambling,

According a news story published by KARK this week, counties in Arkansas and Oklahoma that have casino-style gambling also have above-average percentages of their populations living below the poverty line.

According to KARK, 19% of Arkansans live below the poverty line, but in Garland County–where Oaklawn is located–22% of the population lives below the poverty line, and in Crittenden County–where Southland is located–the number is even higher, at 24%.

Correspondingly, in Oklahoma–where a number of Indian tribes operate casinos–17% of the state’s residents live below the poverty line. In Ottawa and Comanche counties, however, the percentages of residents living in poverty are much higher.

This corresponds with research we did on counties with casinos in Mississippi. We compared Arkansas counties on the west bank of the Mississippi River with Mississippi counties on the east bank of the Mississippi River.

We found that casino gambling does not appears to be effective at lifting communities out of poverty.

Here is a breakdown of our findings:

  • Thirty percent of the population of Tunica County, Mississippi, lives in poverty; across the river, in Lee County, Arkansas, 31.5% of the population lives in poverty–virtually a tie, despite the fact Tunica County has nine casinos.
  • In Coahoma County, Mississippi, 38% of the population lives in poverty. In neighboring Phillips County, Arkansas, 33.5% lives in poverty. Despite having a casino, Coahoma County has more impoverished residents than Phillips County does.
  • In Washington County, Mississippi, 29% of the population lives in poverty. Across the river, in Chicot County, Arkansas 33% of the population lives in poverty.

Here’s the kicker: The U.S. Census Bureau estimates 22.7% of the population of Mississippi lives below the poverty line. That means even a place like Washington County, Mississippi–which has two casinos and the lowest poverty levels of any Mississippi county we reviewed–still has an inordinate number of citizens living below the poverty line.

If casino gambling is an economic boon, where’s the evidence? If gambling bolsters the local economy, provides jobs, generates revenue, and so forth as its proponents claim, why are the poverty levels so high in these counties that have casino-style gambling?

If we’re going to build a better economic future in our communities, casino gambling simply does not seem like the way to do it.

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