One-armed-bandit fans and racetrack railbirds could feel the pinch from state government under a legislative bill requiring Colorado gaming venues to check if big winners owe back child support before paying out.
The bill’s sponsor, Rep. Joel Judd, D-Denver, calls it a “surefire method” for ensuring deadbeat parents don’t profit from dollars due their children.
Casino owners say it’s unfair legislation that intrudes on private business and forces them to become something they’re not: debt collectors.
Deadbeat parents wouldn’t be the only gaming winners to feel the bite of House Bill 1166.
Windfalls destined for tax delinquents and scofflaws who fail to pay court fines or restitution would also be seized under the bill.
With more than $1.1 billion in uncollected child support in Colorado, Judd says tapping into casino and racetrack winnings could recover up to $1 million a year.
While that’s less than a half percent of the $280 million the state collected in overdue support last year, Judd said, “any child helped is a good thing.”
Limited-stakes casino gaming is legal only in Black Hawk, Central City and Cripple Creek. There are five racetracks in Colorado.
Representatives of the Colorado Gaming Association concede the importance of child-support collections but challenge Judd’s proposal as onerous.
“If we’re to help collect it, then it needs to be in a manner that doesn’t interfere with normal business operations,” said Mike Feeley, an attorney for the gaming association.
Judd’s collection estimates are based partly on the state’s intercept of lottery winnings from deadbeat parents, which last year topped $78,000 – including $21,000 from just one parent who had a winning ticket.
The state’s deadbeat-collection system kicks in for lottery winnings of more than $600.
Winners must file a tax form to collect, and their Social Security numbers are checked against a master database of deadbeat parents.
Judd’s bill would work the same way, except casino and racetrack owners would have to call a special state-owned hotline.
The state already uses other methods to collect from parents avoiding child support, including wage garnishment, tax-refund seizure and denial of hunting and fishing licenses.
Staff writer David Migoya can be reached at dmigoya@denverpost.com or 303-820-1506.
