Watchdog agency nears end of probe of study commission

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. -- The General Accounting Office is wrapping up an investigation of the National Gambling Impact Study Commission, the commission's executive director said Monday.

Timothy Kelly, who runs the daily operations of the nine-member federal commission, said he expects the GAO to release its findings by the end of next month.

The investigation was sparked by Sen. Richard Bryan, D-Nev., a commission critic who complained to the GAO, the investigative arm of Congress, that the panel appeared to be circumventing federal laws governing open meetings.

Congressional sources said GAO investigators expressed concerns during their investigation that open meeting laws may not have been followed by the panel.

Concerns also reportedly were raised that the commission may have been lax in accounting for the work hours of its top staff members and may not have been doing a good job of keeping records of its spending.

Kelly said that the commission cooperated fully with the GAO and that he expected the federal panel to come out of the probe in good shape.

"I'm cautiously optimistic they will show that we worked hard and played by the rules," Kelly said.

The commission was given $5 million by Congress to study the social and economic impact of gambling across America for two years. It's expected to deliver its report to Congress and the president June 18.

Throughout much of its existence, the commission has faced profound differences of opinion among its members about the merits of gambling. Casino industry allies and critics are on the panel.

Bryan's request prompted Rep. Frank Wolf, R-Va., a leading industry opponent in Washington and the father of legislation creating the commission, to ask the GAO to investigate gambling's influence on society and the political process.

Kelly said the commission also has cooperated with the GAO in that inquiry, which is just getting started.

GAO analysts are here this week monitoring the commission's meeting as part of the probe requested by Wolf.

The casino industry has called the investigation a waste of taxpayer dollars because much of it duplicates the federal commission's work.

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