NCJ Number
120063
Date Published
1988
Length
88 pages
Annotation
Gambling and its acceptance in the United States has fluctuated during various periods of social, economic, and political change.
Abstract
Current gambling policy at the State and Federal level mirrors the uncertainty of Americans concerning the problem of gambling. Some feel gambling is a morally and socially destructive activity that must be suppressed, while others believe the enormous popularity of gambling makes it a suitable activity for licensing and taxation by governments. Consumer expenditures on commercial gambling activities, such as lotteries, are growing faster than American incomes. There are five principal forms of legal gambling -- bingo, lotteries, pari-mutuel betting, off-track betting, and casinos in Nevada and New Jersey. Illegal gambling includes numbers and policy, horsebooks, sportsbooks, sportscards, single-event sports betting, and illegal casinos. Appendix, index.