The process of licensing new casino owners is a function of the Nevada State Gaming Control Board, which was set up originally with the primary purpose of removing "undesirable" elements from the gambling industry. The burden of proving to the licensing authorities that you’re legitimate and have the necessary skills available to operate a casino in compliance with the law rests entirely with you, the applicant, and to "pass" you’ve got to be squeaky clean.
In order to weed out the legitimate businessmen from the ranks of mobsters and other shady characters who used to run much of the business in Las Vegas, the licensing process consists of a stringent set of checks and counter-checks that delve way back into an individual’s business and personal life, examining past and present associates, financial records, and anything else that the GCB deems relevant. These background searches are carried out in painstaking detail — the regulators are in no hurry and if it takes five years, so be it, although one to two is the norm. No journey is considered too great, either: If you’ve lived in Australia, Albania, and Argentina, that’s where the agents will travel to investigate your activities.
The entire process, including public hearings to dig deep into any personal or business transgressions that you admit to or that are turned up in the course of the investigation, is conducted on your dollar. Yup, that’s right — you pick up the tab, which routinely runs to between $500,000 and $1 million, excluding the legal fees you’ll incur getting help and advice in connection with your application and regardless of whether a license is ultimately granted to you or not. If it is, you and your business practices will continue to be scrutinized for as long as you hold that license, which continues to be subject to costly fees, payable each year, not only for your license but also for every gaming device on your casino floor.
So even if you are lucky enough to win a mega-jackpot one day (which, according to the Powerball Web site is a 1-in-146,107,962 shot as far as their Grand Prize is concerned) and there happens to be a Las Vegas casino up for grabs at the time, you might want to think twice before placing your bid.
