Is the US-facing online gambling business growing so fast that regulators can’t keep up with it? That’s the argument that Jordan Maynard, chair of the Massachusetts gaming commission made recently in comments reported on by the Guardian newspaper. Maynard is calling for massive, nationwide gambling reforms that include a national self-exclusion list to help fight problem gambling.
Having served in his position since 2022, the year sports betting was made legal in Massachusetts, Maynard has watched the gaming industry grow by leaps and bounds. During that time, he’s observed that the industry is growing so fast that regulators are having trouble keeping up. “When I think about the industry right now, I see a highway without speed limits, cars without seatbelt dingers. Regulators are who put the seatbelt dingers in. I don’t think the car manufacturers just woke up one day and decided to annoy whoever’s driving the car until they put their seatbelt on,” he told the Guardian.
It’s clear that Maynard isn’t particularly impressed with how Massachusetts-facing operators are handling their booming business. He recently invited all of them to a public forum on the subject and was disappointed when all 20 operators chose to request private meetings instead. “They were worried about having the conversation in public. My job is not to increase profits for the operators. That’s not my job,” he said.
Maynard also made it clear that he’s not buying the industry’s argument that more regulation will boost the black market. “I don’t like the unregulated market being used as the boogeyman to every operator for every reason,” he said. “I don’t want the legal market to race to be the illegal market. I want the illegal market to either not exist, or if it does exist, it’s in a highly competitive space with what’s regulated,” he added.
It’s clear that Massachusetts is going to be the state that moves regulation into a new realm. What’s not as clear is how many states will be as inquisitive as Massachusetts?