When Kentucky lawmakers voted to legalize sports betting in 2023, playing catch-up to surrounding states, they required a small portion of its tax dollars to support a new state fund.
The Problem Gambling Assistance Fund is meant to help people and organizations address unhealthy gambling behaviors. They can apply for money through the fund to work on new initiatives or build on existing ones.
As of mid-December, two funding opportunities are available through it: one to increase public awareness of the problem, and another to train health workers.
The fund is administered by the state’s Department for Behavioral Health, Developmental, and Intellectual Disabilities, part of the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services.
Lisa Lee Williams, the cabinet’s chief of staff, told LPM News through email that the funding opportunities opened in October and will stay open as late as June 2025.
“Before issuing contracts for any projects, we needed to assess the available funding for the year,” Williams wrote.
Williams said that, as of mid-December, the healthcare training opportunity had yet to receive an application. She added that money from the fund, which was at nearly $1.3 million, had so far been used for internal costs, such as staffing.
The Kentucky Council on Problem Gambling is one group preparing to apply for state assistance funds. Its executive director, Mike Stone, told LPM News that the group wants to use those to support its annual education and awareness conference, scheduled for March in Florence.
Stone also said that KYCPG is looking into submitting other funding proposals for counselor training and public awareness efforts.
According to a report from the Kentucky Horse Racing and Gaming Corporation, sports betting in the state created more than $324 million in adjusted gross revenue between its legalization Sept. ’23 to Oct. ’24. That led to around $46 million in total tax revenue. The assistance fund takes in 2.5% of that.
That influx of total tax dollars, mostly propping up the state’s pension fund, was a main argument of proponents wanting to bring wider sports gambling to a state dominated by the horse industry and its wagering.
While placing a bet on teams like the Louisville Cardinals and Kentucky Wildcats is more accessible than ever, that easy use has also heightened concerns about addictive behaviors.
Kentucky-based calls to the national 1-800-GAMBLER helpline are answered at RiverValley Behavioral Health in Owensboro. According to data provided by Gerrimy Keiffer, who works at the center, calls about harmful gambling are consistently higher each month than they were before sports betting became legal.
RonSonlyn Clark is KYCPG’s president and a licensed gambling counselor. She said she’s seen more clients seeking help since sports betting was legalized, estimating it was around four each year before, to now well over a dozen.
She said those demographics have also changed: from older men and women to primarily younger men.
“It's just right there in your face more and more,” Clark said about sportsbook advertisements. “And the temptation of, there's $500 for free play money, or however much they want to give you, it's just too much.”
While KYCPG takes a neutral stance on betting, it’s focused on addressing unhealthy outcomes. That work includes getting more counselors in the state who are licensed to specifically treat gambling issues.
Last January, the council hosted a training session for about 20 people to help get them certified. Clark said the group wants to repeat that kind of training next year, with an option for people to do it online and on their own time.
She also said the council is interested in utilizing a new certification in Kentucky: using peer support specialists who previously struggled with unhealthy gambling to help others in need.
“We know that sports gambling is only going to increase. We're going to see more and more people addicted, and [a] younger and more diversified group than ever. And we have to prepare a workforce that is able to handle the increases that we're going to see,” Clark said.
