I saw this story in the Las Vegas Sun and decided to investigate further. Governor Sandoval, in his State of the State address, very briefly called for the modernization of Nevada’s gaming laws. Here’s the entire relevant extract from the speech:
Since I completed my term as chairman of the Nevada Gaming Commission, the gaming entertainment industry has expanded to new states and many new corners of the world. Competitive forces demand a new approach from our regulatory infrastructure. In an increasingly competitive and global economy, Nevada will be “the” place for gaming innovation. Nevada started this industry. We shaped its development, and we must remain the undisputed leader in the gaming economy. Twenty-first century demands mandate that we provide a flexible environment for the technological resources that are the underpinning of modern gaming devices. I have asked the leadership of our regulatory bodies to begin immediately to process statutory and regulatory changes that sensibly reflect the modernization of the industry.
FYI, Sandoval was chair of the commission from 1999 to 2001; when he left, most casino slots still paid out in coin, the only servers on the gaming floor were toting cocktails, and Stanley Ho’s STDM still had a monopoly on Macau gaming. So there have been significant changes in the business in the last decade, and he’s right to call for modernization.
I don’t see any sweeping changes, since the consensus seems to be that you don’t fix what isn’t broken. I’d expect changes more along the lines of this (pdf), which are extremely technical, rather dry, and absolutely essential to the continued growth of the industry.