United States has always been concerned about people’s right and freedom to exercise their rights without any control. In American you can buy cigarettes, go to war, vote and these are the things which you can do when you are 18 here. There are many other things which you can exercise when you turn 18 however currently a Nevada lawmaker wants to add gambling to this list. Assembly Bill 86, sponsored by Assemblyman Jim Wheeler, R-Minden, would drop the legal gambling threshold from 21 to 18 years of age.
In Nevada, the first day of the western state’s new legislative session has reportedly seen a lawmaker introduce a measure that could see the legal gambling age lowered by three years to 18.
According to a report from the Las Vegas Review-Journal newspaper, the proposed AB86 measure from Republican representative Jim Wheeler was one of over 200 pieces of legislation presented to the Nevada State Assembly in Carson City on Monday and it now faces an uphill battle to becoming reality.
The newspaper reported that the idea of lowering Nevada’s gambling age from the current stipulation of 21 was first floated by a group of the state’s gaming regulators in 2008 after being raised by a lawyer during a Las Vegas gaming law conference. But the suggestion was quickly shot down by lawmakers with industry experts currently unsure how Wheeler’s proposal will be received by members of the Nevada State Assembly before proceeding to the Nevada State Senate and the desk of two-term Republican governor Brian Sandoval.
“Personally, I think if you’re old enough to go [and] serve our country in foreign lands, you’re old enough to come to Las Vegas or Reno or Lake Tahoe and have a good time,” Wheeler told local television broadcaster KTVN-TV in July when submitting the required bill draft request concerning AB86.
Wheeler told KTVN-TV that the passage of his legislation could see Nevada casinos face an increased challenge of ensuring only players that were 21 were being allowed to consume alcoholic beverages as the current rules on drinking would remain intact.
“Obviously, an 18-year-old is not allowed to drink in this state,” Wheeler told the broadcaster. “So, they would have to check identifications but they’re probably doing that anyway to make sure they’re of gambling age.”
