Local Law Enforcement Grants Available From PA Gaming Control Board

Application Deadline January 21, 2020

HARRISBURG, PA: The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board today announced that it will begin accepting applications from local law enforcement agencies in the Commonwealth to receive grant money for the purpose of investigating violations of and enforcement of laws relating to unlawful gambling.

The Board today posted on the homepage of its website the Local Law Enforcement Grant Program’s Guidelines and Application, and announced that the deadline to submit grant applications is January 21, 2020.

Annually, $2 million is allocated to the Board to award grants to local law enforcement agencies for the purpose of investigating violations of and enforcement of laws relating to unlawful gambling in the Commonwealth.  Local law enforcement agencies who are eligible to apply for these grants include:

·         Municipal and Regional Police Departments

·         District Attorney Offices

·         Pennsylvania State Police, when it is the primary enforcement agency in that municipality

·         Task Forces of any combination of the above agencies

·         College and University Police Departments.

The inclusion of college and university police departments as local law enforcement agencies as eligible applicants in the program is new and has been added in recognition of the role these entities may play in combatting illegal gambling on higher education campuses.

Funding of the Local Law Enforcement Grant program had been discontinued as a result of the reallocation of those funds to the Casino Marketing and Capital Development Account in Section 1407.1 of the Gaming Act.  The State Supreme Court invalidated the diversion of funds to that account in 2019, resulting in the funds again being available for distribution to eligible local law enforcement agencies.

The Board’s Program Guidelines and Application Form are available on the Board’s website, or by contacting Denise Miller-Tshudy, Senior Counsel at 717-703-2562 or dmillertsh@pa.gov .

About the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board:

The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board is tasked to oversee all aspects of gambling legalized under 2004’s Race Horse Development and Gaming Act and the Gaming Expansion Act of 2017. In addition to slot machine and table games gambling at land-based casinos, the expansion includes online casino games available to date on four sites; sports wagering offered through sportsbooks at 12 locations and through six online outlets; video gaming terminals (VGTs) offered thus far at 11 qualified truck stops; fantasy sports contests through eight providers; and, online games at airports.

The mature land-based casino industry in Pennsylvania currently consists of 10 stand-alone and racetrack casinos in operation, along with the two smaller resort casinos.  These facilities collectively employ over 16,000 people and annually generate over $1.3 billion in tax revenue from slot machine and table games play. Construction of a 13^th casino is currently underway along with a number of new “mini-casinos” that are expected to begin operation over the next couple of years.

Additional information about both the PGCB’s gaming regulatory efforts and Pennsylvania’s gaming industry can be found at https://gamingcontrolboard.pa.gov  . You can also follow the agency on Twitter by choosing @PAGamingControl.