The Executive Division oversees the daily operations of the MGC and provides administrative support to the divisions within the Commission. This Division provides direction in the areas of finance, regulation, and human resources. The Executive Division is responsible for developing policies to guide the direction of the agency and the growth and development of the industry to ensure the utmost integrity of gaming in the State of Mississippi.
The Accounting Division is responsible for activities relating to purchasing, payroll, and accounting for the agency. Additionally, the Division records and classifies financial information for preparation of reports which provide comparisons of actual expenditures with projected budget totals.
The Personnel Division is responsible for the administration of all State Personnel Board policies and procedures, including new hires, rehires, promotions, demotions, transfers, terminations, and all other aspects of the recruitment and hiring process. Responsibilities also include maintenance of the Variable Compensation Plan and handling of all personnel matters for the agency.
MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEMS (MIS)
The MIS Division is responsible for planning, developing and maintaining hardware and software needs to support the electronic data processing for the Mississippi Gaming Commission.
CRIMINAL INTELLIGENCE DIVISION
The scope of the Criminal Intelligence Division’s duties and responsibilities ranges from the creation and maintenance of various databases, conducting unannounced casino regulatory inspections, handling media relations, to maintaining the agency webpage content.
Utilizing the resources of law enforcement personnel, the Criminal Intelligence Division investigates criminal violations identified in casinos, illegal slot machines, and illegal gaming establishments located throughout the state, as well as assists MGC agents in investigating criminal violations.
The Criminal Intelligence Division also assists both the Investigations and Compliance Divisions in ensuring that individuals and/or companies with unsavory backgrounds are not authorized to conduct business in the State of Mississippi.
The Enforcement Division is responsible for overseeing the day-to-day operations of casinos and ensuring they follow the regulations as outlined by the Mississippi Gaming Commission and the Gaming Control Act. Enforcement Agents monitor the licensed casinos in the state on a routine basis to ensure their operations comply with the statutes, rules and regulations approved by the Commission. The Agents are required to inspect and examine all premises where gaming is conducted or where the devices and equipment are manufactured, sold, or distributed. Agents are also responsible for inspecting all equipment and/or supplies on or about the premises of a licensee. Many of the responsibilities of the agents are performed during routine monitoring visits to the casinos in their respective districts.
The Enforcement Division is responsible for responding to patron complaints/disputes with casinos. Complaints/disputes include the operation of slot machines, gaming table activity, and disputes over alleged winnings, etc. The Division is further responsible for the initial investigation of any suspected criminal activity within licensed casinos. Agents are authorized to make arrests when appropriate.
The Division is headquartered in Jackson; however, the majority of the agents are assigned to field offices in Tunica, Biloxi and Vicksburg.
The Enforcement Division requires law enforcement certification of its enforcement personnel.
The Investigations Division is charged with investigating all gaming, manufacturer and distributor's licenses, findings of suitability, key employee licenses, other Commission approvals, and reporting all material facts to the Commission. The investigative process is ongoing and continuous by virtue of industry employee turnover, management changes, acquisitions and mergers in the gaming industry.
The Investigations Division is also responsible for maintaining all records of gaming applicants, as well as other documents filed with the MGC.
The Investigations Division requires law enforcement certification of its investigative personnel. Investigators continue their education through in-service training such as schools, seminars, workshops and on-the-job training. Firearms qualification requirements are also attained.
CHARITABLE GAMING (BINGO) DIVISION
The Charitable Gaming Division was created under Section 97-33-50 of the Mississippi Code, 1972 Ann., to license and regulate the operations of all charitable bingo organizations, manufacturers, distributors, operators, and commercial lessors in the State. The Charitable Gaming Division’s responsibilities include performing background and financial investigations, making recommendations of approval or denial for licenses, record keeping, data input, financial analysis and enforcement of the charitable gaming law.
The investigation of applicants includes conducting findings of suitability for the officers, partners or principals of the applying entities and the bingo supervisors and their alternates.
Enforcement agents of this division conduct both scheduled and unannounced site inspections of licensed bingo organizations to ensure that the games are conducted in compliance with the law and MGC regulations. Licensees may be brought to administrative hearings for various violations which can result in denials for licensure, suspension of a license and/or fines.
Monthly and quarterly reports of bingo activities are submitted by the licensed bingo halls, commercial lessors, distributors and manufacturers. These are monitored by the Jackson office staff. Problem areas that are noted during the review and analysis of the reports are resolved jointly by the enforcement agents, the Jackson office and the licensee.
The Division continued its policy of education and training for the staff by participation in off-site study courses, on-the-job-training, Law Enforcement Training Academy courses, and firearm qualifying events.
The Gaming Laboratory is charged with the approval of all electronic gaming devices, programs, associated equipment and firmware used in those devices. The Division establishes maintenance procedures for machine field testing, certification and jackpot verification. The Laboratory trains agents on machine testing and jackpot verification procedures. The Lab is also equipped to evaluate electronic devices involved in alleged cheating incidents and gaming devices involved in player disputes. The division is based in Jackson.
In addition to its approval responsibilities, the Division provides technical consultation to other divisions of the agency relative to electronic gaming equipment, electronic gaming devices involved in patron disputes, the seizure of illegal gaming devices statewide, and assists the Legal Division in cases involving illegal gaming devices.
The Division approves software modifications, prototype gaming devices, Wide-Area Progressive Systems, and "Inter-property" progressive links.
Since its inception, the Gaming Laboratory Division has maintained an extensive database which serves as a basis for all field inspections conducted by the Enforcement Division. This information is used to verify gaming devices in the field prior to the games being offered for play to the public.
The Legal Division of the Commission, staffed by the Office of the Attorney General, represents the Commission and the Executive Director in legal proceedings to which they are a party and advises them in all administrative matters.
The Compliance Division is charged with the responsibility of routinely examining and reviewing the financial and accounting records of gaming licensees in the State of Mississippi to ensure compliance with internal controls standards, federal and state laws, and Mississippi Gaming Commission Regulations. Examinations include areas such as review engagements, soft count and hard count observations, internal control evaluation, minimum bankroll verifications, cash counts and casino cage reconciliation. The Compliance Division is also responsible for monitoring financially troubled casinos to ensure that assets are properly safeguarded and no unusual activity is occurring with the corporate and financial records. This includes industry performance analysis, high risk licensee monitoring, financial statement analysis, etc. In addition, the Compliance Division will, monitor licensee's loan and lease transactions, monitor vendor contracts, and monitor associated equipment installed at various casinos.
The Compliance Division is staffed with individuals trained in the specialized field of casino auditing. The Compliance Division is headquartered in Jackson; however, audit teams are permanently assigned to offices in Vicksburg, Tunica and Biloxi.
All officers have continued education through in-service training such as schools, seminars, workshops and on-the-job-training.
The Corporate Securities Division conducts background and financial investigations of corporate applicants for licensure and other regulatory approvals. Detailed work programs are used during these corporate investigations. In addition, the Corporate Securities Division is responsible for the investigation of all registered publicly traded corporations seeking approval for delayed or continuous public offerings. The Corporate Securities Division also monitors registered publicly traded corporations, which includes a review of the annual and quarterly SEC filings, forms and reports, press releases, proxy statements, and all other corporate related reports submitted to the SEC as required by the Securities Exchange Acts of 1933 and 1934.
The Corporate Securities Division focuses on conducting thorough financial and legal investigations of corporations applying for licenses to operate in Mississippi and suitability investigations of any corporate shareholder of a licensee. This corporate investigation includes a review of the financial viability of a company for the five-year period preceding the application. It also incorporates reference checks with the SEC to determine if the company is or has been the subject of an investigation for any illegal activity. The Corporate Securities Division consists of analysts and investigators who are trained in the areas of corporate finance, organizational structures and SEC reporting and who possess the necessary expertise to complete corporate financial and legal investigations.
In addition, the Corporate Securities Division prepares and submits Agenda Recommendations on a monthly basis for the monthly meetings of the agency. These Agenda Recommendations include, but are not limited to, licensures, findings of suitability, registration of publicly traded corporations, registration of holding companies, transfers of equity interests or securities, foreign gaming approvals, acquisitions, mergers, reorganizations, delayed or continuous public offerings, as well as affirmative stock pledges, negative stock pledges, imposition of stock restrictions and guarantee of securities and hypothecation of assets.
Furthermore, the Corporate Securities Division conducts all on-site due diligence reviews of institutional investors seeking institutional investor waiver approvals.
All analysts and investigators have continued education through in-service training such as schools, seminars, workshops and on-the-job-training.
The Work Permit Division is responsible for the oversight of those persons who work in the casino industry in positions requiring a work permit.
Work permits are issued to gaming employees who are employed in gaming areas, sensitive positions and/or positions where money is handled or authority is given for providing complimentary services or benefits. The Division maintains a database of applicants along with electronic files. The applicants scan and email work permit applications to the Jackson office. The Work Permit Division is presently on-line with AFIS, (Automated Fingerprinting Identification System) whereby an applicant’s background is investigated prior to the issuing of a gaming badge. This process is completed in less than 48 hours unless special circumstances occur. The branch office will still fingerprint and photograph each applicant. Gaming work permit badges are issued for three years.
If an applicant is found to be unsuitable to obtain a work permit, a denial or revocation process is initiated by the Work Permit Division. Testimony at the requested hearings is given by the agent that processed the denial or revocation.
This Division processes applicants and ensures compliance with the Self Exclusion Program.
Placement of the self exclusion list applies to all state regulated casinos in Mississippi. The Regulations require each casino to develop and implement internal controls to detect those persons who have signed up for self exclusion. Once on this list, each property identifies that person in their computer system as a disassociated patron. The property removes the person from their mailing list for promotional materials, prevents them from cashing a check or receiving credit of any kind. A photo is made available to surveillance to allow them to detect persons on the list.
The forms are available at the casino and on our website but a person wishing to be placed on the list must come to one of the offices of the MGC (Biloxi, Jackson, Vicksburg, or Tunica Resorts). Once at the agency, an employee will explain the procedure and allow the person to read over the waiver before making the decision to be placed on the list. After the papers are signed, a photo of the person is taken and distributed to all state regulated casinos. The person can choose a time period from a minimum of five (5) years up to a lifetime. Placement on the list is irrevocable for the time period chosen. After the time period has expired the person is removed from the list without any action required by the person. The request for self-exclusion may be made only by the individual for whom exclusion would apply, and not by any other person.
There are penalties for properties that do not follow the proper procedures as well as penalties for those who are placed on the list and then reenter the casino. A property that does not follow their internal controls can be disciplined by the MGC. The self excluded person may face trespassing charges. Repeated attempts to reenter casinos may lead to a person being placed on the permanent exclusion list of the MGC. Any winnings confiscated from a self excluded person are forfeited to the MGC after the proper taxes have been subtracted.
The MGC recognizes how difficult it can be for a casino to detect a person on the list when they may disguise themselves and play with cash not using a player’s card. Often a person is caught when they win a taxable jackpot (over $1,200). This will require a person to provide proof of identification. At that point the property will check their computer system to determine if this person is on the list.
The self exclusion list will not prevent a person from gambling and is not a cure for problem gambling. It is simply a tool to be used by someone with a gambling problem.
