New Jersey gambling regulator who advised nation on integrity and oversight retires
The man who launched New Jersey to years of national leadership in internet gambling and sports betting is retiring
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — David Rebuck, who oversaw New Jersey's development of nation-leading internet gambling and sports betting industries and advised more than two dozen states on setting up and regulating their own gambling operations, retired Friday after 13 years as one of America's most influential gambling regulators.
Rebuck, 71, stepped down as director of the state Division of Gaming Enforcement after leading New Jersey though a turbulent period when some Atlantic City casinos closed and the state became a leader in emerging forms of gambling including sports betting, which came about after the state won a U.S. Supreme Court case to permit it.
“This industry is never dull,” he said. “There are always going to be challenges and opportunities. We wanted to be the pinnacle of regulating the industry so that the casinos would have a better chance of success while protecting customers.”
Rebuck was appointed by former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie in 2011 at a time when Atlantic City's casinos were reeling from competitive economic pressures from casinos in neighboring states.
“The marching orders were clear: to implement the law that had just passed,” he said. “There was a feeling on the part of the casinos that they were overly regulated by rules that hadn't been updated since the 1970s.”
A streamlined governmental oversight system helped reduce some of the casinos' overhead expenses. But it would not prove enough to prevent five of the 12 casinos from shutting down in less than two years; two of them have since reopened.
“You thought you were doing everything you could do to help them survive in this
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