First of all, congratulations to the good people at Stop Predatory Gambling, who have successfully raised such a ruckus regarding the ATMs in casinos issue that people are actually paying attention, even though it’s holiday time and the legislature is only holding informal sessions.
Secondly, here is a terrific comment from mimolette which succinctly explains why there is more to the ATM issue than simply leveling the playing field between state- and federally-chartered banks (as those pushing the amendment would have it).
That [that this is a “dumb” fight] was my rep’s thinking when we started looking at this. But that was before I’d taken a look at that GCA [Global Cash Access, a non-bank company specializing in ATMs sited in casinos] website, and realized just how predatory their services are.
I may be wrong about the mechanics of how ATMs are sited work, but I’m assuming that whoever controls the premises gets to determine whose ATMs can be placed there. I’m further assuming, based on the marketing, that it costs something to bring in the GCA terminals, so that an ordinary restaurant or drugstore isn’t likely to have them. Which in turn would mean that if you have to leave the casino, even if it’s only a few extra steps for you, you’re going to be using a normal ATM. If you’re over your withdrawal limit, or your cash advance limit on your credit cards, it’s going to turn you down. And that’s it: no money available, you go home.
If you can get to a GCA machine, though, its sniffer technology catches the fact that your attempted withdrawal is about to fail. And it intercepts it before you get the denial, and a phone at the terminal rings, and there on the other end is a nice person ready to help you get hold of some money anyway. Maybe you’d like an instant-issue gaming credit card! Maybe there are other assets they can help you borrow against! This is so simple, and they’re so helpful! And it’s not like you weren’t already motivated to try to get hold of some more cash to gamble with.
Standing alone, I think this is a damned good reason for the legislature to block this amendment until further examination of the issue can be made. I strongly suspect that I and the people I talk to aren’t the only ones who had no idea of this before yesterday. There may be better ways to address the problem than banning ATMs and ATM-like devices from all premises controlled by casino interests, but for now it looks like a basic public-safety measure.
The Globe editorial page has even gotten in on the act, correctly opining today that “any law that allows ATMs in casinos requires serious public debate.” Informal sessions are not the proper place for this kind of thing.
UPDATE: Maura Healey, the incoming Attorney General, has weighed in, urging the legislature “to carefully consider & not rush through proposed changes to the location of ATMs at casinos.”
I am pleased to inform BMG readers that in the last hour, both the House and Senate removed the two amendments concerning ATMs in casinos from the Bank Modernization Act (H.4110), so now it is a clean bill!
Thank you to everyone who weighed in with your legislators over the few days, and a special thanks to Stop Predatory Gambling for highlighting a concern many of us shared about the regulation of ATMs in casinos. Of course, concerned citizens will need to remain vigilant on this important consumer protection issue next session, as I am confident that the gambling industry will be putting forward a number of proposed changes to the state’s casino law, including some that will increase predatory practices on consumers gambling at Mass casinos and slot parlors. Happy New Year to all! – Jamie
Thanks Senator!
Coming back on New Year’s Day to find a comment unexpectedly promoted to front-page status is a delightful surprise; coming back to find that the Great and General Court has stripped this provision out of the legislation is (obviously) even better. On both counts, it’s a great way to start off the year.