At the July 30 meeting of the Missouri Gaming Commission, emergency rules were established to provide guidelines, regulations and internal controls for casinos that plan to take advantage of the recently passed Senate Bill 741, which allows Missouri casinos to provide lines of credit for at least ,000 to people “deemed creditworthy,” starting August 28.
SB 741 does not set a maximum amount of credit that can be extended, and it also states that the loans cannot bear interest and cannot be given to anyone who is intoxicated. Those requesting credit must present a promissory note and must repay the debt within 30 days of issuance with money, not collateral.
Gaming Commission legal counsel Ed Grewach, said the new guidelines will give the commission the ability to audit Missouri casinos and to assure they comply with the law. “We did the emergency rules so that if any casino wanted to start on August 28, the regulatory framework and the rules would be in place by that date. There could be some changes to these regulations to meet the reality of how our regulations have worked during that first few-month period,” Grewach said.
In addition, the commission will accept written comments about the new law through October 2 and will hold a public hearing on October 6. Then the commission will review the rules once more on October 29, Grewach said. He noted commissioners have sent drafts of the proposed rules and have communicated with casinos throughout the state as the measure made its way through the legislature. He said 11 of Missouri’s 13 casinos most likely will offer credit to customers.
Among those will be Pinnacle Entertainment’s three Missouri facilities, Ameristar St. Charles, Ameristar Kansas City and River City Casino and Hotel St. Louis. Ward Shaw, vice-president and general manager, said, “We know that this is a convenience that our guests have really wanted for some time. Especially our guests who travel here from outside of the area. It’s really just a service convenience that we know we have demand for.”
Shaw said depending on the applicant, the credit-check process can take one hour to several days. He added even if a guest qualifies for a $10,000 line of credit, he or she may not receive that amount. “The Missouri law will require them to qualify for at least a $10,000 line before we can even give them anything,” Shaw said.
