AGA President Bill Miller Hopeful for Second Donald Trump Administration

Posted on: December 16, 2024, 08:48h. 

Last updated on: December 16, 2024, 10:08h.

Devin O'Connor @CasinoorgDevinO Read More

Expertise: Asia Pacific Gaming, Commercial Gaming, Legislation, Politics.

Bill Miller, the president and chief executive officer of the American Gaming Association (AGA), believes the US commercial and tribal gaming industries will face less federal regulatory pressure during a second Donald Trump administration than perhaps it would have faced under another commander-in-chief.

Last month, Trump secured a second four-year stint in the White House after easily defeating his Democratic opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris. During last week’s National Council of Legislators from Gaming States’ 2024 Winter Meeting at Caesars New Orleans, Miller participated in a discussion regarding the consequences of the 2024 election.

When discussing how Trump and the Republicans’ control of the House and Senate might impact gaming, Miller expressed his belief that the incoming administration and Congress will take a more hands-off approach.

Less pressure,” Miller said about whether a Trump government will bring more or less oversight. “There probably isn’t going to be a federal department of gaming under Elon and Vivek.”

Miller, of course, was referencing Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy spearheading Trump’s effort to reduce government spending and waste.

Gaming Doges Bullet? 

Musk and Ramaswamy are leading DOGE — the Department of Government Efficiency — a proposed presidential advisory commission that will seek to restructure the federal government to reduce expenditures and increase efficiency. Musk and Ramaswamy will work to trim government — not expand it — and that’s why the odds aren’t good that a federal gaming commission or regulatory agency will be established during the next four years.

Some Democrats in Congress have been calling for federal action on the gaming industry. Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and Rep. Paul Tonko (D-NY) want Congress to enact federal oversight of sports betting.

Blumenthal and Tonko’s bill, the SAFE Bet Act, would place numerous federal regulations on every state that has legalized sports betting. The proposed conditions include a ban on all sports gambling advertising between 8 a.m. and 10 p.m., affordability checks on bettors, daily deposit limits, and the banning of credit cards. The bill is set for a hearing on Tuesday in the US Senate Judiciary Committee.

The gaming industry, led by Miller’s AGA, strongly opposes the SAFE Bet Act. The trade group says the “heavy-handed” federal statute “is a slap in the face to state legislatures and gaming regulators who have dedicated countless time and resources to developing thoughtful frameworks unique to their jurisdictions.”

Gaming Tribes Optimistic, Too 

Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, a former Democratic House Rep. from New Mexico, made history in 2021 by becoming the first Native American to serve in a presidential Cabinet. Tribes celebrated her appointment, and Haaland’s Interior and Bureau of Indian Affairs have been allies to Native communities over the past three years.

Many Native tribes have expressed optimism about Haaland’s likely successor in North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum (R).

North Dakota tribes have such a great relationship with Gov. Burgum,” said Standing Rock Chairwoman Janet Alkire. “We all have such an admiration and respect for the friendship, partnership, and collaboration with Gov. Burgum. He always reached out if we had an issue.”

The Interior Department oversees the BIA. The federal agencies are responsible for taking Indian lands into the federal trust, which allows the land to be deemed sovereign. Sovereign lands are allowed to house Class I and II gaming. For Class III gaming, which includes slots and table games, tribes must enter into compacts with their host state.