gambling in alberta - Research Services - University of Lethbridge

A similar study was conducted by the Canada West Foundation in 2000 whereby a stratified
random sample of 4,000 registered charities operating in Canada were mailed a survey, with
647 questionnaires being returned (16% from Alberta) (Azmier & Roach, 2000). Thirty four
percent reported that their organization participated in providing some form of charitable
gambling between 1995 and 1999. This percentage varied considerably by sector, with 62% of
charitable health organizations using this form of fundraising compared to only 8% of religious
organizations (Azmier & Roach, 2000). Similarly, health organizations were the most likely to
identify gambling as their largest revenue source (22%) followed by culture, art and recreation
(19%), social services (16%), education and research (12%), other (5%), and religion (2%).
Azmier & Roach (2000) identify several reasons why gambling revenue is very attractive to
charity groups. First, traditional fund-raising techniques such as door-to-door or phone
solicitation, direct mail appeals, auctions, benefit performances, running/walking/biking events,
galas/dinners, festivals, bake sales, etc. tend to require much more effort and tend to generate
much less revenue. Second, charitable gambling revenue tends to have fewer strings attached
to its use compared to other revenue sources. Third, there is strong public support for the use
of gambling for charitable purposes.
Thus, it seems clear that even 10 years ago when this research was conducted many charities
had come to rely on gambling revenue, with some sectors more reliant than others (Azmier &
Roach, 2000; Berdahl, 1999; Campbell, 2000b). There have been no comparable studies done
in recent years. However, what is clear is that there are more community groups in Alberta
seeking gambling revenue than ever before. In the early 1990s it was typical for 2,000 to 3,000
community groups to receive ALF grants, whereas it has averaged 6,000 ALF grant recipients
per year in the past 10 years. Similarly, in 2000 there were under 4,000 charities registered to
hold a casino event. This has increased to over 7,000 in 2010, with the number of charities in
some regions having grown at a much faster rate than other regions (Figure 31) (MLA Advisory
Committee, 2010). 65 It is still certainly a widely held belief that many Alberta charity groups rely
on charity gambling revenue (Kleiss, 2010).
65 This situation has caused some problems, as the waiting time now to hold a casino event has increased to
approximately 30 months (MLA Advisory Committee, 2010). An additional issue concerns the fact that because
charities can only hold casino events in a casino located in their region (Appendix C), the ratio of charities per
casino varies considerably between regions, resulting in widely different waiting times (ranging from 16 months in
Fort McMurray and Medicine Hat to 34.5 months in Lethbridge). Also, because some casinos are more profitable
than others, the revenue per event also varies from $18,000 in the Camrose region to $77,000 in the Edmonton
region (MLA Advisory Committee, 2010).
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