Guest view: Illinois' video gambling venture may not last long

Rollout time is nigh for the grand Illinois video gaming venture that in 2009 promised up to $500,000 in new state revenues to help meet the state's staggering deficit.

In early 2011, gamblers will be able to bet up to $2 per play in about 75,000 machines located in liquor-licensed restaurants, bars, truck stops, private clubs, airport lounges, off-track betting parlors and veteran/fraternal establishments, all called "hosts" for the machines.

Illinois Gaming Board Chairman Aaron Jaffe, Administrator Mark Ostrowski and 200 staffers have labored more than a year on the program involving licensing of machine manufacturers, the "operators" who will own and place the expensive machines in the liquor-serving establishments called "hosts." The long licensing process is nearing completion.

Each machine will automatically transmit cash reports to the board's central computer. This data will be checked against the reports submitted by the operators who collect the cash from each machine weekly and then divide the total, 35 percent to the operators, 35 percent to the hosts, 25 percent to the state. The remaining 5 percent goes to municipalities and counties, with a small sliver going to a fund to remedy social costs.

Chairman Jaffe predicts that Illinois could become the largest video poker jurisdiction in the world, with 10,000 machines at the state's existing casinos plus estimates of 75,000 state-licensed machines, and at least 10,000 operating illegally. That could be in the range of 100,000 video poker machines operating in the state.

Opponents justifiably call video machines the crack cocaine of gambling. Gamblers are lured both by the hope for winnings and by the illusion of skill. To keep them playing, they're often offered free drinks and even female companionship while they gamble away money needed for family expenses. Other states legalizing video gambling have reported increases in crime, family destruction and suicides resulting from psychological addiction.

In December 2009, federal agents confiscated illegal machines in taverns in Bridgeport in Chicago's 11th Ward. It's well-known that the infamous mob, the Chicago Outfit, operates machines throughout the Chicago metropolitan area. Experts say they can rake in $100,000 yearly from each illegal machine. State Sen. Mike Jacobs, a Democrat from East Moline, states, "We already have video gaming in Illinois. It's just run by the mob." Gaming Board Chairman Jaffe says he is "very apprehensive about organized crime and the history of some local police officials looking the other way with illegal video gambling."

The gaming board is also worried about the possibility of illegal machine operators somehow "beating the system" and acquiring licenses. There's another difficulty, too. Mob-run "looser" machines will easily lure gamblers from those licensed by the state. They could be confiscated, but the board's small staff could not cover the entire state.

But there's a far, far bigger problem. Already "opted out" of the state's program by ordinance are 70 counties and municipalities. In the Chicago area, this includes all counties but Kane and many municipalities. Chicago remains silent. If Chicago also opts out, there would be no state-licensed machines for about two-thirds of the state's population. This would severely cripple the program. If this happens, many will argue that because of its admitted social costs, this crack cocaine video gambling venture should be ended.

• Dan Walker is former Illinois governor, former president of the Chicago Crime Commission, and author of "The Maverick and The Machine: Dan Walker Tells His Story."