State Rep. Michael DiMassa, D-West Haven, stepped down today amid accusations of gambling away allegedly misappropriated federal Covid-19 funds from February to September that were meant to help his former constituents. The timing of his departure cast a shadow over what a more positive announcement the same day: The Connecticut Lottery Corporation (CLC) opened its first retail sportsbook – at Sports Haven in New Haven.   Read more here.

Regulators start to take note of gambling industry’s big push to draw more customers The gambling industry’s deluge of sports-betting ads and free-money offers on television, radio and online, is beginning to concern regulators. Online gambling operators, such as DraftKings Inc. and FanDuel Group, are spending hundreds of millions of dollars, and large shares of their revenues, on marketing, putting sports wagering in front of the American consumer. The push includes celebrity-filled TV commercials, advertising on billboards and podcasts, and...

Because gambling is quite popular in our society, many teenagers try out different gambling activities, including poker, dice, scratch cards and sports betting, among others. Few adults and adolescents are aware of the risks associated with excessive gambling, which is expressed by a gradual loss of control over gambling behavior. Learn more here:  HS_Fact_Sheet.pdf (ncpgambling.org)