Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation

Members Present:

Chairman McCain (R-AZ), Stevens (R-AK), Brownback (R-KS), Hollings (RMM, D-SC), Bryan (D-LA) and Dorgan (D-ND).

Witnesses:

Senators Bryan (D-NV); Reid (D-NV); Edwards (D-NC); Brownback (R-KS); Representatives Roemer (D-IN); Gibbons (R-NV); Representative Berkley (D-NV); Charles Wethington, President, University of Kentucky; Jim Calhoun, Men's Head Basketball Coach, University of Connecticut; Tim Kelley, Executive Director, National Gambling Impact Study Commission; Frank Farenkopf, President and CEO, American Gaming Association; Don Yaeger, Senior Writer, Sports Illustrated; Brian Sandoval, Chairman Nevada Gaming Commission; Kenneth Winters, Professor of Psychology, University of Minnesota; and Bobby Siller, Nevada Gaming Control Board.

In Chairman McCain's opening statement, he stated that campus gambling is reaching epidemic proportions.  The National Gambling Impact Study Commission recommended, among other things closing the Las Vegas loophole that allows for legalized gambling on amateur athletics.  He has introduced the Amateur Sports Integrity Act to do this.

Senator Bryan, Senator Reid, Representative Gibbons and Representative Berkley believe that the proposed legislation (S. 2267) will do nothing to solve the problem--that banning lawfully regulated college gambling in Nevada which represents 1 percent of gambling on college sports will not address the problem of illegal gambling.   Senator Reid stated that better enforcement is needed--he has proposed legislation to study and report to Congress on measures that could be taken to curb illegal gambling.  Congressman Gibbons stated that S. 2267 would create an undue economic burden on Nevadans and would not assist with the enforcement of the current laws limiting sports gambling.  Representative Berkley said that Nevada's legal sports-betting is strictly regulated, taxed and available only to persons over 21 who are physically present in Nevada.  She has introduced the Illegal Sports Betting Enforcement Act, a bill that would boost law enforcement's efforts to crack down on illegal betting operations and would investigate the scope and uncover the causes of illegal campus-betting.  Bill would call on the NCAA to step up gambling prevention programs on campuses.

Senator Brownback, Senator Edwards and Congressman Roemer support the bill.  Senator Edwards stated that the bill is not intended to solve all gambling problems in America--it will restore some of the integrity that college athletics has lost due to recent point shaving scandals and it will prevent casinos in Nevada from raking in close to a billion dollars annually on amateur athletics.

Mr. Wethington stated that while gambling is illegal in almost every state,  point spreads on college games are published in newspapers across the country, bookies are common on college campuses and new technologies allow bets on college games to be placed over the Internet or in a casino in new ways.  The NCAA supports eliminating from the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act, the exemption that allows the Nevada casino industry to operate collegiate sports-betting schemes and thereby to jeopardize the integrity of sport in America.

Mr. Calhoun said that social acceptance of gambling, and the fact that gambling has become an integral part of the university culture, makes it imperative that we extend the ban on betting on college games in all States.

Dr. Kelly said that the National Gambling Impact Study Commission recommends that betting, currently legal, be prohibited on collegiate and amateur athletic events.

Mr. Fahrenkopf urged that Congress reject the NCAA's well-meaning but misguided proposal to ban Nevada's legal college sports wagers and recommended that a panel of experts be convened to develop a set of measures for all relevant parties to implement in and out of government.

Mr. Yeager spoke about a point shaving scheme involving an NBA player.  He believes that Internet gambling and point shaving is a recipe for disaster.

Mr. Sandoval said that without infringing on the constitutional right of states to make their own decisions about legal gambling, Congress should make resources available for a study of illegal wagering on college sports, including whether Nevada sports books have any effect on it, the effectiveness of present countermeasures and the need for new countermeasures.

Dr. Winters said that while he recognizes that the gambling industry is a legitimate form of recreation, more data are still needed from campuses regarding the extent and nature of problem gambling and that raising the minimum age on all gambling to age 21 is worth serious consideration.

Mr. Siller believes Federal funding should assist in aggressive strategy for zero tolerance to illegal bookmaking--targeting illegal bookmakers across country at peak times (March madness and bowl games); educate college students regarding pitfalls of sports wagers; and resist any argument in support of Internet gambling--should be banned.  Bill does not address all issues.
 
Senator Bryan and Mr. Wethington discussed scholarship implications, that there were no prosecutions under Mr. Wethington's tenure as President of the University of Kentucky and that NCAA had only three staff members assigned to investigate illegal gambling.  Senator Brownback and Mr. Wethington discussed that this is an issue whose time has come--loophole needs to be closed.  Chairman McCain, Mr. Sandoval and Dr. Winters agreed on the importance of working to ban Internet gambling.

Prepared by:  Relda Nacos, NIST, 975-3080.

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