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A new study analysing the use of “good cause” funding as a gambling legitimation tactic has found that veteran support constitutes less than 1.5 per cent of electronic gaming machine losses and less than 10 per cent of total community contributions.
The study, now published, contained a review of Returned and Services League (RSL) venues operating electronic gaming machines (EGM) in Victoria, Australia, and the level of funding contributed to veterans. It was authored by Louise Francis, Charles Livingstone and Jonathan Hallett.
The study sought to analyse provision of charitable services derived from gambling revenue among Australia’s principal veteran’s organisation and determine if an Australian system allowing tax concessions to not-for-profits meets its primary intention of funding community purpose.
“The justification for electronic gaming machines operating in RSLs is the ability to better support the veteran community. Yet the evidence outlined in this paper indicates that licensed RSL sub-branches are disbursing modest funding to support the RSL’s avowed purposes,” according to a statement from the study.
“As a result, licensed RSLs are failing to adequately meet the high standards with which they are held in the community.
“This creates a predicament that may cause damage to its reputation and ethical standing. A dependence on gambling revenues for charities and other ‘good causes’ globally, undermines their original purpose and potentially risks their reputational standing.
“(The) review of the licensed RSL network reinforces the systemic failings of community contribution schemes linked to EGMs identified in previous research.
“Further, this review confirms such schemes represent an excessively inefficient approach to funding community initiatives and causes.
“If the intended purpose of community support is to be fully realised across all such schemes or arrangements, it is increasingly evident that significant reform is required.”
The study collected data using policy which includes records from Victorian not-for-profit venues operating electronic gaming machines, which have been submitted to the gambling regulator showing contribution to community purposes.
The community benefit statements of licensed Returned and Services League venues were analysed, with an initial survey of the years 2010–19 and a more detailed analysis of the years 2017–19.
“The first round of analysis focused on the 10-year period 2009–2019. In that period, $579.5 million in real terms was recorded as community contributions, representing 27.6 per cent of the combined net gambling revenue (i.e. losses incurred by EGM users) of $2,097 million for that period,” the study said.
“The greatest proportion of contributions (79 per cent) claimed were business operating expenses, classified as ‘indirect’ community contributions.
“Claims classified as ‘direct’ contributions (i.e. claims of donations, sponsorships, or other types of support to veterans or the wider community) amounted to $120.6 million, 21 per cent of all community benefit claims.
“Targeted analysis of CBS schedules for the period 2016–17 to 2018–19 inclusive showed that the overall pattern of claims was similar to the 10-year series, with business operating costs representing 77 per cent and veteran-related purposes (i.e. veteran welfare and commemorative initiatives) accounting for 7.5 per cent of the claims recorded.”
