NEWS & NOTES

Singapore authorities report an increase in the number of locals in professional counseling for gambling addiction. A total of 967 people sought help in 2018, the highest number since 2014. The figure was released by Singapore’s National Council on Problem Gambling, which also reports that more than 340,000 people chose to self-exclude from casinos last year. ● Mexico’s Caliente Group has opened a new gaming venue at the Hipódromo de Agua Caliente Casino in Tijuana. The facility, developed in partnership with Euro Games Technology, features 33 machine games and electronic multiplayer table games. • The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority has approved a $32 million contract with Las Vegas-based Klai Juba Wald Architecture and Interiors as part of the LVCVA’s ongoing $1.5 billion renovation and expansion of the Las Vegas Convention Center. Klai Juba Wald will oversee remodeling of the north, central and south exhibition halls. • Macau’s Financial Intelligence Office said it received 507 suspicious transaction reports from casinos in the first quarter, down from 541 received in the same period last year. In all, the agency said it received 699 STRs in the three months ended March 31, down from 909 in the first quarter of 2018. Under local law, casinos are only required to report transactions larger than 500,000 Macau patacas, equal to about US$62,500.  Liberty County’s Board of Commissioners last week pledge support for Alabama-Coushatta Tribe of Texas’s struggle to keep its Naskila gaming center open on its reservation. It voted to support H.R. 759, which would by Act of Congress legalize the Class II casino, which otherwise looks likely to close due to an adverse federal court ruling. • A bill passed by the Maryland General Assembly would reduce penalties related to illegal gambling. The legislation is one result of a three-year effort in Maryland to update and modernize the law on the books. Under the bill, anyone caught engaging in illegal betting could be subjected to a $500 or $1,000 citation, depending on the amount of money involved. Currently, illegal gambling is a criminal misdemeanor carrying a fine and and/or a six-to-12-month jail sentence. The bill passed both chambers of the legislature on unanimous votes, and is awaiting the signature of Governor Larry Hogan. • Arizona could join nine other states with laws that protect the privacy of lottery winners. The state legislature passed a bill that would allow lottery winners to keep their names secret. Governor Doug Ducey is expected to sign the bill into law. • The Mars candy company is removing its vending machines in London that look like slot machines and dispense M&M’s candy as a “jackpot,” after the buyer pulls a slot-like handle and three reels spin to a matching combination. The company made the decision after a group from the British Parliament devoted to battling problem gambling complained that the machines promote casino-style gambling to children. The group of Parliament ministers had responded to a complaint from a youth gambling expert at Australia’s Deakin University, who said the machines had “the potential to normalize gambling as a fun activity for children. • Pennsylvania sports betting revenue increased by almost one-third in its fourth full month, as more venues opened amid March Madness. The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board said last week that gamblers bet a record $44.5 million in March at six casinos and two off-track betting parlors, where sports betting is approved. That was above $31.5 million bet in February, which had three fewer days. Rivers Casino in Pittsburgh led with almost $12 million in bets. SugarHouse Casino in Philadelphia was second with just over $9 million and Parx Casino in suburban Philadelphia was third with $8 million. The casinos made $5.5 million, while $2 million went to taxes.