Colorado is proposing a program that would help problem gamblers in the state. The state’s Division of Gaming (CDG) held a workshop on Monday and recommended creating a database that could be shared with all of the sportsbook operators in the state.
Currently, there are 26 sportsbooks across the Centennial State, including industry leaders such as DraftKings, FanDuel, and BetMGM.
Getting on the list would require the customer to be placed in the database for a period of one, three, or five years. Then all 26 licensed sportsbooks would be required to ban those players for whatever period they specified.
That would be an improvement to the current system. Players who want to be on the list have to do so with each sportsbook operator they frequent. That information is not shared and is often confusing since sportsbooks have different terms for bans.
One of the rule changes discussed at the workshop Monday morning in a CDG conference room was if players get put on a list in Colorado, operators may also choose to exclude them in other states they have a presence in.
Representatives from the sportsbooks that attended said they agreed in principle with the plan, and several retail sportsbooks suggested that the CDG install computers in facilities where problem gamblers could register on their own.
“I actually really like this process, only because in some states where there is information-sharing back and forth, there are a lot of duplicates and just not very uniform, clean information,” Alana Sacerdote, Penn Entertainment’s senior responsible gaming manager told Sports Handle.
“It’s really hard, too, for tracking purposes,” she added. “If there were six entries for a person and now they’re showing as removed on one and not removed on the other, it gets really hard to track. I think it’s really hard, actually, for the regulator to track as well. I appreciate this update and change.”
Peggy Brown of the Problem Gambling Coalition of Colorado said this is an important step and can also lead to imposing a lifetime ban.
“It’s a deterrent. It also demonstrates a commitment of somebody trying to get into recovery,” Brown said. “There’s a buy-in there, a desire, and that has to be in place, and that’s a huge, huge act. I think that’s what the literature will show you.”
