National Gambling Impact Study Commission Act

Other short titles	National Gambling Impact Study Commission Act of 1996
Long title	An Act to create the National Gambling Impact and Policy Commission.
Nicknames	National Gambling Impact and Policy Commission Act
Enacted by	the 104th United States Congress
Effective	August 3, 1996
Citations
Public law	104-169
Statutes at Large	110 Stat. 1482
Codification
Titles amended	18 U.S.C.: Crimes and Criminal Procedure
U.S.C. sections amended	18 U.S.C. ch. 95 § 1955
Legislative history
Introduced in the House as H.R. 497 by Frank R. Wolf (R–VA) on January 11, 1995 Committee consideration by House Judiciary, House Resources Passed the House on March 5, 1996 (agreed voice vote) Passed the Senate on July 17, 1996 (passed unanimous consent, in lieu of S. 704) with amendment House agreed to Senate amendment on July 22, 1996 (agreed voice vote) Signed into law by President Bill Clinton on August 3, 1996

The National Gambling Impact Study Commission Act of 1996 (Pub. L.Tooltip Public Law (United States) 104–169 (text) (PDF), 110 Stat. 1482, enacted August 3, 1996) is an Act of Congress that was signed into law by President of the United States Bill Clinton.^[1]

This legislation established the National Gambling Impact Study Commission in 1997 to conduct a comprehensive legal and factual study of the social and economic impacts of gambling in the United States on:

1. Federal, State, local, and Native American tribal governments;
2. Communities and social institutions generally, including individuals, families, and businesses within such communities and institutions.

Mandates a report to the President, the Congress, State Governors, and Native American tribal governments. Requires the Commission to contract with the Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations and the United States National Research Council for assistance with the study. Authorizes appropriations.^[2] Specifically the commission was to look at the following:

1. existing policies and practices concerning the legalization of prohibition of gambling
2. the relationship between gambling and crime
3. the nature and impact of pathological and problem gambling
4. the impacts of gambling on individuals, communities, and the economy, including depressed economic areas
5. the extent to which gambling revenue had benefited various governments and whether alternative revenue sources existed
6. the effects of technology, including the Internet on gambling

The study lasted two years, and in 1999 the commission released it final report. There was a separate section on Indian gaming provided.^[3]

Findings on Indian Gaming

The commission had many recommendations for the Indian gaming industry. It primarily called on the United States Congress to resolve the cycle of legal issues produced by the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act. It also recommended that "tribes, states, and local governments should continue to work together to resolve issues of mutual concern rather than relying on federal law to solve problems for them" The results of the study on Indian gaming industry are hard to determine.^[3]