Former Michigan state Rep. Brandt Iden was instrumental in making sure the state’s gaming laws included a lower tax on sports betting and a higher tax on casinos, a competitive market with consumer choice and a partnership between the state, national operators and tribes.
Iden said his only regret is, “I would’ve taken a portion of the proceeds from sports betting and directed the state to institute new addiction courts, specializing in treating people with gambling addiction problems.”
Iden, now the director of government affairs for Sportradar, noted the state has courts for people with drug and alcohol issues and for veterans who are struggling. He said, “I think this would be great, and I wish more states would implement it. If I could go back and change the bill, I would’ve put dollars into it.”
Nevada currently is the only state that has a gambling court. If an individual commits a crime there due to a gambling problem, he or she can be sent to diversion instead of prison, to receive treatment and be monitored for 18 to 36 months. Most of the cases involve theft or embezzlement and the success rate for rehabilitation is around 80 percent, officials said. The state saves $24,000 annually for every person who’s not incarcerated.
Iden commented, “What Nevada has identified is, let’s say someone hypothetically robs a jewelry store to satisfy a gambling debt, and a judge can identify that and say, ‘This person really isn’t a hardened thief, they’re not going around robbing all these stores. This individual has a $100,000 gambling debt because they have an addiction problem, so let’s get the person the help they need.’”
“So, what they’re doing is two-fold: They’re getting people out of the normal justice system, and at the same time they’re identifying people with addiction problems and helping them with specific things that work for them. In my opinion it’s really great.”
Currently, no bills are pending in the Michigan legislature to create a gambling court.
