In the News...
KFBK News Talk 1530
February 1, 2010
Electronic Bingo games are going dark. If a non-profit group or booster club wants to play bingo, they must do it the old fashion way with paper and daubers.
The Sacramento Bee
February 1, 2010
Electronic Bingo Machines Removed in Sacramento
Charitable organizations in Sacramento agreed to permanently pull the plug on hundreds of slot machine-style games Sunday. The games generated revenue for community groups and programs benefiting the blind and developmentally disabled.
KCRA 3
January 31, 2010
Last year in the Sacramento area alone, the electronic bingo machines generated $5 million for charities, according to the California Charity Bingo Association. Now those charities will have to fill the gap elsewhere.
News 10
January 31, 2010
Electronic Bingo Machine Ban in Effect
"I think it's going to take away from things you can do right here in town. And for the schools. I don't think it's right," said Dyana Cahill of Sacramento. Charities and booster clubs that use a share of the revenue from the machines will be the hardest hit.
CBS 13
January 31, 2010
It's 'Game Over' For Electronic Bingo in Calif
They say losing the machines will mean thousands of charities are at risk. Backers say the bingo games help keep everything from veterans programs to school bands to school bands afloat.
Contra Costa Times
January 10, 2010
California charities prepare to shutdown electronic bingo machines
Brimming from a banner year on the drum and bugle corps circuit, the Concord Blue Devils soon may find themselves less flush in the wallet, thanks to a federal court ruling that will force the charity and others across the state to pull the plug on a major cash engine.
Sacramento Bee
December 11, 2009
Federal Appellate Ruling Rejects California Bingo Machines
The bid by California charities to use electronic bingo machines has been shot down by a federal appeals court.
Sacramento Business Journal
December 11, 2009
Appeals court ruling says bingo machines violate California law
The electronic games had been used by some charities — including one in Citrus Heights — to raise money.
KFBK - News talk 1530
December 10, 2009
Sacramento Bans Electronic Bingo Machines
Doug Bergman, president and CEO of United Cerebral Palsy of Greater Sacramento, says his organization will lose $350,000 and will be forced to cuts its therapeutic horseback riding program.
LA Times
December 10, 2009
California Bingo Machine Ban Upheld
The charities are challenging a law passed last year that outlawed their bingo machines. The nonprofits argue that the law violates the Americans With Disabilities Act by eliminating the form of bingo most accessible to the hearing-impaired and blind and those without use of their arms.
OC Register
December 10, 2009
California Bingo Machine Ban Upheld
"It's a punch to the gut ... It's very unfortunate for charities"
News 10
December 9, 2009
Judge: Electronic Bingo Ban Upheld
Bingo Bugle
September, 2009
Bingo Games Help Struggling School Programs Survive
Thanks to charity bingo games, thousands of students will still have access to important academic, athletic and character building programs
Senior Magazine
September, 2009
Bingo should be allowed to evolve in a way that allows players of all ages and abilities to participate.
Hesperia Star
August 28, 2009
Oak Hills sports fans spell 'support' B-I-N-G-O
Forget $100 a plate political fundraisers: At Oak Hills High School, the big ticket ways to raise money for sporting events comes with a bingo card instead.
Senior Magazine
August, 2009
Charity Bingo: Fun Healthy, And Critical for Community Charities
Games like bingo and other social activities can reduce the risk of developing a disability by 65% in people aged 60 to 90.
Sacramento Bee
May 9, 2009
Courts set to decide charity bingo machine cases
California tribal casino representatives warn that the state risks losing tens of millions of dollars in tribal revenue-sharing payments if authorities can't shut down charitable bingo parlors that operate casino-style machines.
Sacramento Bee
May 2, 2009
California charities seek relief for loss of electronic bingo
After mixed results in court battles to keep operating casino-style machines, California charitable bingo parlors are seeking financial relief in the Legislature and from tribal gambling funds.
Sacramento Bee
April 4, 2009
California charities warned to end electronic bingo
The state attorney general's office is warning charitable bingo parlors to stop using casino-style machines after a federal appeals court ruled the games are illegal.
Sacramento Bee
December 8, 2008
Editorial: Bingo ban hurts many charities, helps tribes
The Sacramento County Board of Supervisors just acted to comply with a new law banning electronic forms of charity bingo – one the Legislature crammed through in 11 days at the end of the 2008 session.
Sacramento Bee
October 2, 2008
Ban on electronic bingo machines will cripple fundraising, charities say
A wide swath of charities in Sacramento say legislation signed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger that bans electronic bingo machines will cripple their fundraising operations and force major cuts.
Capitol Weekly
September 25, 2008
SB 1369: Act in haste, repent at leisure
SB 1369, which bans electronic bingo machines for fundraising, is a classic example of legislation that was not fully vetted in public, and put together by back room deals. In 2003, Governor Schwarzenegger pledged to veto these kinds of gut and amend bills that had not gone through the policy committees of both chambers, and for good reason. I and many others are hoping that he honors this commitment and vetoes SB 1369.
Red County
September 23, 2008
Note To The Governor: Veto SB 1369
It took nearly 100 days for the State Legislature accomplish it's basic task: pass a budget. Countless other bills that significantly impact our economy, for good or ill, took even longer or were never even heard at all.
Flash Report
September 23, 2008
SB 1369: Trojan Horse Legislation would be bad news for all Californians
SB 1369, introduced by Senator Gil Cedillo (D) of Los Angeles, is a gut and amend bill headed for the Governor’s desk that would devastate hundreds of local charities while allowing California’s tribal casinos to expand their gambling operations onto the internet, essentially amounting to the greatest expansion of legal gambling in California’s history.
IGamingBusiness.com
September 22, 2008
Association Protesting California Bingo Bill
In America, a bill passed through the California legislature allowing larger charities to offer bingo games throughout the state online will soon make its way to the desk of Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger for his endorsement.
Unluckyforsome.co.uk
September 19, 2008
Arnold Schwarzenegger to Veto Online Bingo Bill
Who would have thought that movie star Arnold Schwarzenegger, who was probably best known for his roles in Terminator before he moved into politics...
Los Angeles Times
September 18, 2008
California bills vulnerable to veto by governor
If the Legislature overrides Schwarzenegger’s threatened veto of its budget, he says he will kill hundreds of bills on a wide range of issues.
Capitol Weekly
September 18, 2008
Nail-biting time for those with bills on Gov’s desk
Just because the bill deadline has passed hardly means the legislative season is over. For those with bills sitting on Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s desk, it’s nail-biting time.
Los Angeles Times
September 15, 2008
California's casino-owning tribes have shown how their hefty political donations can trump nonprofit competition.
Fresno Bee
September 7, 2008
We often criticize state legislators for their lack of vision on the big issues facing California.
Sacramento Bee
September 6, 2008
Editorial: Get out the veto pen, Governor
Readers of this page know that we sometimes criticize legislators for their lack of vision.
Modesto Bee
September 5, 2008
Bingo: From pleasant charity game to serious business at the Capitol
In recent years, charity bingo has been unable to compete with the richer prizes and slot machine-type bingo games allowed at Indian casinos in California.
Sacramento Bee
September 4, 2008
Backlog: Lawmakers holding back hundreds of bills
Before adjourning the 2008 regular session on Sunday, lawmakers approved 873 bills that have yet to be acted upon by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Sacramento Bee
September 4, 2008
Editorial: If tribes want it - BINGO! - they get it
In recent years, charity bingo has been unable to compete with the richer prizes and slot machine-type bingo games at Indian casinos in California.
US Fed News
September 3, 2008
Assemblyman Niello Opposes Legislation To Ban Charity Bingo Machines
Assemblyman Niello Opposes Legislation to Ban Charity Bingo Machines Citing the need to slow down and wait for a decision pending in federal court, Assemblyman Roger Niello has voted to oppose legislation that will effectively eliminate electronic bingo for many Sacramento County charities and hundreds of charities statewide.
Sacramento Bee
September 3, 2008
Bingo bill took circuitous route through Capitol
This is a story about how laws are made in California.
CasinoGamblingWeb.com
September 2, 2008
California Assembly And Indian Tribes Robbing Charities With New Gambling Bill
California Assembly and Indian Tribes Robbing Charities with New Gambling Bill Charities rely heavily on gambling to make their money.
Los Angeles Times
August 30, 2008
Republicans in California Assembly fail to block plan to upgrade courthouses
In a decision that favored Sacramento's most influential interest groups, the Senate voted 24 to 9 to outlaw electronic bingo machines that compete with slot machines owned by Indian tribes, which contribute heavily to lawmakers' campaigns.
San Diego Union Tribune
August 30, 2008
Agreement on bingo heads to governor
State lawmakers yesterday agreed to revolutionize "grandma's bingo" with bigger games and prizes in exchange for explicit ban on electronic bingo machines unless they are in Indian casinos.
San Jose Mercury News
August 29, 2008
Calif. Senate approves ban on electronic bingo
A bill that would prohibit charities from using electronic bingo was approved Friday by the state Legislature at the insistence of California Indian tribes.
The Modesto Bee
August 29, 2008
California's prison guards union, Indian tribes flex political clout
One of the more significant developments in Capitol politics over the past two decades has been the evolution - from virtual obscurity - of the California Correctional Peace Officers Association and casino-owning Indian tribes into two very powerful interests.
Los Angeles Times
August 28, 2008
California tribes seek to ban slot-like bingo machines
Rich, politically powerful Indian tribes are pushing California legislators to outlaw some casino competition: slot-like bingo machines that generate millions of dollars for high school sports teams, the blind, and the disabled.
San Diego Union-Tribune
August 27, 2008
A high-profile measure that would outlaw electronic bingo machines while permitting a major expansion of paper versions of the game easily passed the Assembly Wednesday on a 56-3 vote.
Contra Costa Times
August 27, 2008
Lawmakers push ban on electronic bingo
The state budget crawl drags on, but on some things the Legislature can still hustle.
Sacramento Bee
August 24, 2008
Every session of the Legislature offers several examples of some big interest groups ganging up to kick the stuffing out of a smaller interest group.
San Diego Union-Tribune
August 22, 2008
A measure that would outlaw bingo machines while authorizing churches, charities, and other nonprofits to offer what some are calling "megabingo" - simulcasts of conventional paper versions of the game - looks to be unstoppable after it cleared two Assembly committees with unanimous votes Friday.
LegalNewsline.com
August 21, 2008
Bingo deal secures Indian rights, bolsters large non-profits
California's Indian tribes and major charities have hammered out a deal that allows the charities to expand bingo operations without jeopardizing the tribes' stranglehold over slot machines.
Sacramento Bee
August 20, 2008
Indian tribes, charities reach deal on bingo fundraisers
California's politically powerful Indian casino tribes and the state's major charities have worked out a "win-win" deal that would allow the charities to expand their bingo operations while preserving the tribes' constitutional monopoly on slot machines.
CBS 13 (Sacramento)
August 19, 2008
Bingo Bill Backed By Tribes, Catholic Church
The Catholic Church and Indian gaming tribes are supporting a new plan to change the way bingo is played in California, a plan that could put some bingo halls out of business.
San Diego Union-Tribune
August 19, 2008
Church, tribes reach compromise on bingo
The Catholic Church and California's Indian gaming tribes have struck a compromise that would permit a major expansion of conventional bingo while outlawing electronic versions played on machines that look and act a lot like slots.
Capitol Weekly
August 14, 2008
Tribes, bingo operators at war
In recent months, Sacramento has seen a legal and media battle over charity bingo halls.
