Rules and regulations for Nebraska casinos to be unveiled

This final draft, which will be voted on in December, represents a big step forward for casinos.

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) – It’s the culmination of a lot of behind-the-scenes work, around a year of it, in fact. The final draft of the rules and regulations for casinos in Nebraska will be unveiled by the Nebraska Racing and Gaming Commission on Thursday.

This is only the first step, though. Even though everyone gets a look at what the rules will be, it’s not until next month that things really get going.

“We’re really looking forward to the public hearing on December 17th”, says Lynne McNally, Executive Vice President of the Nebraska Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association. “Hopefully they’ll be advanced to the Governor’s desk, and then just waiting for him to act. I’m sure he’ll act in a very efficient manner so that this whole process can start and we can break ground on these new facilities.”

The rules and regulations also need to go before the Attorney General before they’re recognized by the State of Nebraska. Once all those steps are cleared, work can begin.

As for what the rules look like, McNally expects a big emphasis on safety and security, thanks to Nebraska Racing and Gaming Commission Executive Director Tom Sage’s law enforcement background.

“Security, background checks, making sure that the games are conducted properly, and that everyone can enjoy these games and have that confidence that they’re being administered properly”, predicts McNally.

The confidence gamers can have extends to everyone else who’s chomping at the bit as they wait to start work.

McNally says, “The safety and comfort of knowing that we’ve got defined rules and regs in place and ready to go is great for us and we really look forward to opening the two facilities in Lincoln and Omaha.”

From the look of things, that could happen sooner, rather than later.