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Brooke Archambeau is the chair of government relations for the Virginia Moose Association and a member of the board of directors of the Virginia Charitable Gaming Council.

Brooke Archambeau is the chair of government relations for the Virginia Moose Association and a member of the board of directors of the Virginia Charitable Gaming Council. (HAND OUT)

Virginia’s charitable gaming community is made up of veterans and police organizations, Elks and Moose lodges, and many faith-based organizations across the Commonwealth. We’ve been hosting bingo and other types of licensed, licensed, and legally operated charity games for nearly 50 years and have raised tens of millions of dollars to support Virginia’s nonprofit charities and help our most vulnerable populations.

On July 1, new and substantial rules and taxes (disguised as fees) were placed on all licensed and permitted nonprofit charity games in Virginia. These new requirements include limiting the number of slot machines that can be used by charities and requiring charities to participate in costly annual audits. As a result, these new measures significantly increase our operating costs and thereby directly reduce the amount of funding we can provide to the charities we support in the commonwealth. This means that those who rely most on our help get less.

The Moose fraternity, similar to many fraternal and veteran organizations, was founded with the premise that “a burden heavy for one is borne lightly by many”. Our charitable play efforts have helped fund our own sister cities, Mooseheart and Moosehaven, as well as many other community service projects.

The raffles, bingo games, and electronic hitch games have helped our 83 state lodges and departments donate to the Salvation Army, American Cancer Society, Alzheimer’s Association, domestic violence facilities, and area animal shelters. Recently, we were able to help renovate a wing of the Massey Cancer Center at Virginia Commonwealth University and made a commitment to help fund the construction of Richmond’s new Children’s Hospital at VCU.

We are not alone; the VFW and American Legion also conduct legal, authorized gambling to provide essential funding to those who would otherwise be forgotten. Some of the organizations that receive proceeds from our charitable activities include EdMarc Hospice for Children, CHKD, Norfolk SPCA, EquiKids equine therapy programs for children and veterans, K9s for Warriors, Special Olympics and the Safe Surfin’ Foundation.

At the same time as these new restrictions and regulations were imposed on charity games, the General Assembly and the Governor (through budget action) made all “skill games” machines illegal under Section 18.2-325. In addition to the skill machines, there are many “grey games” machines that operate every day in many restaurants, truck stops and convenience stores across the state that mimic slot machines in casinos. These games are illegal from July 1. There are also several facilities in Hampton Roads that host illegal card games and tournaments that are not licensed by the Commonwealth. This cash income is not controlled by the state and the municipalities. At the same time, charity games are experiencing more and more regulation.

Let me be clear: charities are not against government regulation, but we are against the unequal enforcement of the law.

We are very disappointed at the apparent lack of enforcement as it relates to the explicit ban on games of skill and other illegal gambling activities, including unauthorized poker tournaments and cash games that are regularly held in local facilities. The fair, impartial and equal enforcement of laws passed by our elected officials is the essence of the American rule of law and the foundation upon which we organize our great society to maintain our citizens’ trust in their government.

Fellow Virginians wishing to support charitable gambling should call the Virginia State Police hotline at 833-889-2300 to report the addresses of illegal gambling activity. In addition, we encourage our state-elected officials, including the governor and attorney general, to provide much-needed guidance to local officials so that they can enforce the law fairly and impartially.

Brooke Archambaau is the chair of government relations for the Virginia Moose Association and a member of the board of directors of the Virginia Charitable Gaming Council.