Iowa's Casinos Give Back

2017-2018 Building Iowa's Communities Through Philanthropy

View reports from previous years here.

Appropriation of State Taxes

FY2019 Appropriation of State Taxes
This report is released each summer. You can view previous reports here.

2019 Women Leaders in Gaming Founders Award Announced at Sixth Annual Summit

In late October, the Women Leaders in Gaming initiative held its sixth WLG Summit at Prairie Meadows. The event once again gave women in Iowa’s gaming industry an opportunity to come together for networking and inspiration, as well as to recognize this year’s Founders Award winner, attorney Lorraine May.

Founders Award Winner 2019: Lorraine May



This year’s Founders Award recipient is Lorraine May. Lorraine is an attorney in the Hopkins and Huebner law firm. One of her specialty areas for nearly 25 years has been racing and gaming law, as well as working on behalf of several casino clients.

Most notably, she was selected to serve on the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission between 1989-1995 and became the first female chair to serve from 1992-1994. Her service is significant because riverboat gaming was first legalized by the legislature in 1989, and the first casino boats in the country opened in 1991. The Commission needed to get the rules established right, as well as proactively deal with several challenges in those formative years as the gaming industry and legislators had to modify provisions on wager and loss limits. There was also the issue of allowing slots at the racetracks to assure Iowa’s survival against riverboat casino competition from nearby states.

Lorraine’s role on the commission and leadership as chair was pivotal in setting the regulatory foundation and helping to forge the strong, stable, well-regulated industry we continue to work in today.

Congratulations, Lorraine!

Past recipients have been Ruth Kehl, Diane Hamilton, Jane Bell, Mary Ellen Chamberlin and Nancy Ballenger.

The Summit



This year’s summit was keynoted by CEO and workplace strategist Laurie D Battaglia. Her message, Five Secrets to Love What You Do — For Life!, was delivered to more than 100 gaming professionals. In breakouts and discussions throughout the day, Battaglia spoke to the power of aligning a person’s head, heart and soul to create a life that is happy, healthy and energized, in and out of the workplace.

Sharon Haselhoff, chair of the Iowa Gaming Association board and general manager of Grand Falls Casino & Resort (Larchwood), also delivered a call-to-action message about the power of women stepping up to serve — and not just in the workplace.

Haselhoff relayed the story of a woman she’d met who had taken the bold step of moving from private citizen to running for city council — all because of a pothole. The woman found the role so fulfilling, and found herself to be so effective, she eventually became a lieutenant governor of her state. Haselhoff used the anecdote to encourage WLG Summit attendees to expand their leadership roles to their communities.

From The
News Room

IGA Press Releases

9/16/2019
20th Annual Responsible Gaming Education Week September 16-20 focuses on helpful consumer protection tools – Theme: ‘It’s Our Everyday Commitment’
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2/18/2019
Iowa Council of Foundations & Iowa Gaming Association Release Annual Report Showcasing Thousands of Grant Recipients Throughout Iowa
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Industry News

11/7/2019
eSpotlight: Data Business Equipment, Inc.
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11/7/2019
The IGA eShowcase
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