Pennsylvania: Gaming Control Board Levies Fines Totaling $282,205

The largest of the fines is $260,905 and was assessed against Interactive Gaming Operator BetMGM, LLC for 152 instances in which an individual on the Board’s Interactive Self-Exclusion List was permitted to gamble on their sites. Licensed operators of iGaming sites in Pennsylvania must deny individuals on the self-exclusion list from establishing or maintaining an interactive gaming site.

The Board additionally approved OEC recommendations resulting in fines to:

Rush Street Gaming, LLC, a $13,800 fine for failure to file a Principal License renewal application for its Chief Financial Officer; and,

Stadium Casino Westmoreland RE, LLC, operator of Live! Casino Pittsburgh, a $7,500 fine for using revoked software within 11 of its slot machines.

Copies of any of the approved Consent Agreements containing additional details are available upon request through the Board’s Office of Communications.

The Board today also took action to place, or deny removal, of four individuals from its casino Involuntary Exclusion list for leaving a minor or minors unattended while gambling in a Pennsylvania casino. Placed on the list were:

A male patron who left a 12-year-old unattended in a vehicle in the parking lot at Live! Casino Philadelphia on two occasions the same day for a total of 20 minutes while he gambled at the sportsbook. The patron also was cited for cheating and trespass; and,

A female patron who left a 12-year-old unattended in the bus lobby of Mount Airy Casino Resort for 26 minutes while she gambled on slot machines.

Denied their requested removal from earlier placement on the Involuntary Exclusion list were:

A male who, in 2022, left five minors, ages 2,4, 5, 11 and 13 unattended in a vehicle in the parking lot of Presque Isle Downs & Casino for 35 minutes while he gambled at slot machines; and,

A female who, in 2021, left her 14-month-old child unattended in a locked vehicle in the parking lot of Valley Forge Resort Casino on multiple occasions the same day for a total of 11 minutes with outside temperatures of 88 degrees while she gambled in the sportsbook.

Actions such as these to deny statewide gambling privileges serve as a reminder that adults are prohibited from leaving minors unattended in the parking lot or garage, a hotel, or other venues at a casino since it creates a potentially unsafe and dangerous environment for the children. To compliment the efforts by casinos to mitigate this issue, the Board created an awareness campaign, “Don’t Gamble with Kids”.

In all, the Board today placed 9 individuals onto its various Involuntary Exclusion Lists. These placements prohibit the individuals from either gaming in a casino in Pennsylvania, via an online betting site regulated by the Board, or a Video Gaming Terminal (“VGT”) location. Since its inception, 1,280 persons have been placed on the Casino Involuntary Exclusion List while 62 persons are on the iGaming Involuntary Exclusion List.

 The Gaming Control Board is scheduled to meet next at 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday, February 26, 2025 in the Board’s Public Hearing Room located on the second floor of the Strawberry Square Complex in Harrisburg. More information including the agenda will be posted on the Board’s website prior to the meeting.