The coalition of cities, labor unions, and community members are urging the Attorney General to withdraw the proposed regulations and conduct a comprehensive, transparent review that considers their true economic and social impacts. Photo courtesy of the California Gaming Association

SACRAMENTO, CA (MPG) - Hundreds of city workers, AFSCME union members, and cardroom employees gathered outside Attorney General Rob Bonta’s Sacramento office on Oct. 22 to protest his proposed regulations that would ban blackjack-style games and severely limit player-dealer games in California cardrooms, a move projected by his own economic analysis to wipe out up to 50% of jobs and revenue.

The proposed regulations are unnecessary and punitive, as the games are lawful under California law and have been operating for decades.

For Sacramento County, this means the loss of over 500 living-wage jobs and millions in city funding for essential public services, including police, fire, parks, libraries, and senior programs.

“We’ve seen this before. During COVID, when cardrooms were forced to close, cities like ours, Hawaiian Gardens, laid off staff, cut community programs, and barely made it through,” said Shavon Moore-Cage, the Political Advocate and Past Vice President of AFSCME Local 36. “We can’t survive another hit like that, and this time, it’s not a pandemic; it’s an attack by policy that can be avoided.”

Cardroom employees and local leaders also criticized the Attorney General’s proposal for effectively creating a gaming monopoly for the state’s largest tribal casino operators, while leaving small cities behind.

Cities are officially warning that eliminating legal cardroom operations would also increase illegal gambling and organized crime, citing a Los Angeles Times investigation that documented a surge in unregulated pop-up casinos across Los Angeles County.

Even the Standard Regulatory Impact Assessment (SRIA) issued by the Attorney General’s own office admits that half of all players could stop visiting cardrooms under the new rules. Yet, it fails to account for the devastating ripple effects on nearby restaurants, hotels, and small businesses.

The coalition of cities, labor unions, and community members are urging the Attorney General to withdraw the proposed regulations and conduct a comprehensive, transparent review that considers their true economic and social impacts.

“Our message is simple,” Moore-Cage said. “Protect our jobs. Protect our communities. Don’t take away our city’s lifeline.”