Northern Quest raising gambling age to 21

Northern Quest Casino is doing what the Legislature wouldn’t.

Starting June 1, no one under 21 will be permitted to gamble at the Airway Heights casino, which is asking its younger customers to cash out any accrued points or credits by the end of this month.

“We believe it’s important to bring our gaming policies more in line with the national trend to limit gaming to people 21 and older,” Phil Haugen, the casino’s assistant general manager, said in a press release.

Nationally, the majority of tribal casinos require patrons to be 21 or older because state compacts prohibit minors at casinos that serve alcohol, according to Second Chance Washington, an organization dedicated to promoting awareness of problem gambling.

According to the federal 1999 National Gambling Impact Study, 70 percent of teens reported having gambled, with as many as 6 percent of teens addicted to gambling. The study recommended increasing the legal gambling age to 21.

People under 18 have long been banned under state gambling commission rules from wagering, although they were allowed to join other family members in playing Bingo.

But for those 18 to 20 caught gambling, the law includes no penalty. In a sting of 100 card rooms several years ago, state gambling commission agents found that 40 percent allowed minors to gamble.

In 2007 and again this year, state Rep. Alex Wood, D-Spokane, tried to change that. His House Bill 1345 would have set penalties: a fine of up to $125, community service and court costs. Among the supporters: sheriffs, police chiefs and prosecutors. No one – at least publicly – opposed the bill.

Yet despite overwhelming approval in the state House of Representatives for two years in a row, it has died both times in the state Senate.

Earlier his year, conservative Sen. Jim Hargrove, D-Hoquiam, proposed raising the gambling age to 21 statewide. The increase would have also applied to horse racing and buying state lottery tickets.

But the change was opposed by gambling-industry groups, including charities. They argued that lowering the age would hurt bingo halls. A lobbyist for card rooms told lawmakers at a February hearing that some card rooms already don’t allow players under 21. But that, said lobbyist Delores Chiechi, is a decision best left to businesses. Also, she argued, if 18- to 20-year-olds can join the military, they should be allowed to gamble.

Hargrove’s bill died in committee this February. A similar attempt in both the House and Senate two years ago also failed.