Some of you may recall politicians bragging that they'd never allow anything as scurrilous as on-the-spot loans from an industry that profits so handsomely from customers' bum investments. The same legislators also said the state would stick with slots. They lied.
In January, the legislature passed amendments to the 2004 Gaming Act to allow both table games and casino credit. Last week, the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board quietly approved regulations governing this exciting new development.
The credit regulations are in standard legalese, except for the provision allowing a distraught player to put herself on a self-exclusion list that's so spineless she can have a change of heart, hop off the list, and resume borrowing in a matter of days. That part's just sad.
I'd love to let the casinos have their say, but reps from Parx and Harrah's didn't respond to my interview requests. Perhaps they're too busy helping players put their life savings on the line.
Borrowing made easy
All casinos have cash machines and accept personal checks up to $2,500. Credit, known as counter checks, is an option for those who max out but are convinced their luck will change - even though, statistically, it can't and won't.
"How many people who get $500 or $1,000 in credit will walk out of the casino with that money?" asks Rep. Paul Clymer (R., Bucks), a casino critic. "They're only taking credit because they already lost everything else."
Philadelphia gambling addict-turned-activist Bill Kearney still marvels at the night he blew through a $100,000 line of credit in Atlantic City, only to be cheerily offered another $100,000 so he wouldn't leave.
"They're not giving you the money, they're giving you something to gamble with," he sniffs. "You're not leaving with nothing."
Under the PGCB regulations, players seeking credit provide personal and financial information to casino staff. A credit check ensues. Of chief concern: players who've stiffed other casinos.
