The annual BCACG Conference was held in Vancouver Oct 6, 2011
8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. at River Rock Casino, Richmond, B.C.
Draft agenda
9 am Welcome: Minister Ida Chong
1 pm Skip Triplett
3 pm The panel on “Advocacy on behalf of Charitable and Non-profit Organizations during the Crisis in Gaming Funding” is at 3 pm. Amir Ali Alibhai (Alliance for Arts & Culture), Sandy Garossino (co-founder of Vancouver Not Vegas Coalition), and Lindsay Brown (Founder of Stop BC Arts Cuts, co-founder of Vancouver Not Vegas Coalition).
On March 23, 2011, the Bingo Council of BC (BCBC) made a decision to dissolve their society. BCBC has a long tradition of working hard to ensure that charities and non-profit organizations receiving revenues from bingo licenses were supported. As a society of Bingo Associations they were strong and united. As a result many of the…
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BCACG would like to welcome Skip Triplett as Chair of the provincial government’s review of gaming grants. The website for the review is here, and the government’s media release is here (it includes a bio for Mr. Triplett). We hope for a productive relationship with Mr. Triplett. Our main hope of course is that the…
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Vancouver Not Vegas, which fought a battle against a mega-casino in Vancouver that was partly motivated by anger over decreasing gaming contributions to charities, has issued a message to Premier Christy Clark: If you really believe in “Families First,” save the Vancouver International Children’s Festival! Restore all gaming grants to all charities and non-profits in…
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UPDATE: Gaming was in fact taken away from Min. Rich Coleman in March 2011, in Clark’s cabinet shuffle upon entering the premier’s office. The BC government’s cuts to charities were illegal, and we are glad that Min. Rich Coleman was removed as he did not communicate openly with BC’s charitable sector. However, we still see…
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Sandy Garossino is a BCACG advocate. Click on photo to see YouTube video of part of her presentation to the Vancouver Not Vegas! forum, where she speaks about the expansion of gaming currently running alongside massive cuts to charities.
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Councillor Woodsworth’s motion passed! Thanks to Councillor Woodsworth for supporting charities and for calling for a delay in any further gaming expansion until gaming cuts and gambling irregularities and regulation are addressed! This is good news, but the fight is not over. The City does not necessarily have influence over provincial government policy, but this…
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This is a submission the BCACG will be presenting to all the BC leadership candidates in both party races. It was first presented this morning, to Christy Clark: The BCACG has two positions concerning the current charitable gaming funding crisis, one short term and one long-term. For the short term BCACG requests that the gaming…
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By Sandy Garossino, BCACG advocate. First printed in The Vancouver Observer. Revelations of our casinos’ extraordinary vulnerability to organized crime—and the deals that Rich Coleman has struck with casino developers—should give British Columbians considerable pause. The financial records of the BC Lottery Corporation give cold comfort to anyone looking for reassurance there. Pete McMartin’s piece…
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Please see these articles on Spencer Chandra Herbert’s questioning of the high subsidies given to casino owners at the same time as charities received deep cuts in their gaming grants. Articles were published in the Vancouver Sun and The Province.
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