[IMAGE] Tax Season is Upon Us: Can Gambling Losses Be Deducted?

Tax Season is Upon Us: Can Gambling Losses Be Deducted?

It’s that time of year again: tax filing season. While gathering your receipts, W-2s, and 1099s, you may wonder what income and expenses you have to report, what you can deduct, and what may be different this year. You are not alone. The biggest tax reform legislation in more than 30 years became effective on…read more

[IMAGE] Think Twice Before Placing Bets on the Playoff Picture

Think Twice Before Placing Bets on the Playoff Picture

It’s Week 16 of the NFL 2018 Regular Season, and we’re coming down to the wire. The last two weeks of games were filled with upsets that shook the playoff picture, including the one that still has South Florida abuzz – the Miracle in Miami. Favored by 9 points, the New England Patriots kicked a…read more

[IMAGE] Responsible Gambling During the Holidays: Why Lottery Tickets Make Dangerous Gifts for Minors

Responsible Gambling During the Holidays: Why Lottery Tickets Make Dangerous Gifts for Minors

The Florida Council on Compulsive Gambling (FCCG) joins the National Council on Problem Gambling and the International Centre for Youth Gambling Problems and High-Risk Behaviors at McGill University in raising awareness regarding the risks of underage lottery play during the holiday season. Today, the Florida Council on Compulsive Gambling is raising awareness about responsible gambling…read more

Happy Thanksgiving words with pumpkins and leaves over dark wooden background

Don’t Count On A “Lucky Break”

The smell of turkey and football is in the air – it’s starting to look a lot like thanksgiving! In this thanksgiving themed blog post, we’re sharing the history behind the “wish bone” and insight as to why you might want to pass when it comes to betting on rivalry weekend. Come On, Give Me…read more

Blurred Lines: Gaming vs. Gambling Addiction

Addiction to gaming is described in the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5), which is used by mental health professionals to diagnose mental disorders. The DSM-5 notes that gaming must cause “significant impairment or distress” in several aspects of a person’s life including, but not limited to: an uncontrollable desire…read more

Military mom with daughters

Combatting Gambling Addiction: Everyone’s Mission

As we enter Veterans Day weekend, let us begin to reflect and honor the sacrifices made by U.S military personnel and their loved ones to defend our freedom and democracy. Veterans: From all of us here at the Florida Council on Compulsive Gambling – Thank you for your service.   To be a veteran in…read more

[IMAGE] How Sports Betting Pools Risk More Than Money

How Sports Betting Pools Risk More Than Money

Can you believe that the football season is already almost half over? Is it going the way you expected? What has been the biggest surprise so far? It’s not easy to predict the winner of all 256 regular-season NFL games – let alone the spirited matchups in the arguably more volatile college football season. It’s…read more

Hope with purple ribbon for "o"

Speak Out Against Domestic Violence!

Defining Domestic Violence: Domestic violence is the willful intimidation, physical assault, battery, sexual assault, and/or other abusive behavior as part of a systematic pattern of power and control perpetrated by one intimate partner against another.1 Domestic violence does not discriminate and can affect anyone regardless of gender, age, nationality, religion, or social status. In the…read more

[IMAGE] The State of Sports Betting: Is It Legal in Florida?

These are Not the Only Players in the Game

Football is here in full force! The preseason rankings are starting to show their true colors, and the top teams in both pro and college leagues are being defined. You can still count on plenty of upsets throughout the remainder of the season, but even the pundits can’t predict when or how they will happen….read more

World Suicide Prevention Day: #BeThe1To Make a Difference

Suicide: A Growing Health Concern Suicide is a public health issue that does not discriminate against age or ethnicity and can impact anyone regardless of their social or economic status. In Florida, it is believed that one person dies by suicide every three hours. Unfortunately, that number is rising.1 While there is no single cause…read more

Problem Gambling in Pop Culture: The Gambler (1974)

Problem Gambling in Pop Culture: Karel Reisz’s The Gambler (1974) Karel Reiz’s The Gambler (1974) is a poetic, gritty drama that provides a valuable and realistic representation of the perils faced by the millions of Americans effected by problem gambling. The film follows Axel Freed (James Caan) as he desperately exhausts every possible avenue to…read more

A Nationwide Event Takes Hold in Florida: Money Smart Week

Money Smart Week is a nationwide event about something that’s important to everyone: personal finance. From learning how to count money as a child to improving your credit score to developing the best retirement strategy, the subject touches people at all stages of life. For most of us, it’s also an area where we can…read more

How Gambling Can Rewire Your Brain

When you hear the word “addiction,” what comes to mind? The spotlight has been shined on the dangers of alcohol and drug addictions, and the signs and symptoms of these are relatively easy to spot. But the psychological mechanisms of addiction do not require a substance. An addiction is a brain disorder where an individual…read more

Why Problem Gambling Awareness Month is a Big Deal

Problem Gambling Awareness Month is a big deal here at the Florida Council on Compulsive Gambling. We are joined by organizations from around the country to raise awareness on the issue of problem gambling in addition to prevention, treatment and recovery services throughout the month of March. So what is problem gambling? Your first thought…read more

Think You Know March Madness? Get to Know PGAM.

March marks the beginning of Problem Gambling Awareness Month. Organizations from around the country partake in this grassroots campaign to help raise awareness concerning the issue of problem gambling. March also marks the beginning of March Madness, the NCAA’s largest sporting tournament when basketball teams from around the country compete for a national championship. Betting…read more

Join us in PGAM!

March is Problem Gambling Awareness Month (PGAM). At its core, PGAM is a grassroots campaign that relies on a wide range of organizations from different industries to help raise awareness for the issue of problem gambling. As the conversation regarding mental health in the United States begins to intensify, it’s important that the gambling addiction…read more

National Drug and Alcohol Facts Week

National Drug and Alcohol Facts Week   The Florida Council on Compulsive Gambling (FCCG) supports the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) during their annual National Drug and Alcohol Facts Week (NDAFW).   NDAFW brings teens and scientific experts together to discuss the scientific facts…read more

Technology: A Force for Good or Evil?

Technology: A Force for Good or Evil? January 18, 2018 From the most basic technologies, i.e. “the wheel”, to the modern smartphone, technology has been changing the world. January 6 is the day to recognize those achievements and to look to the future of technology and how it impacts our daily lives. In many respects,…read more

6 TIPS TO SURVIVE THE HOLIDAYS

6 TIPS TO SURVIVE THE HOLIDAYS Turn on any television, radio, or simply scroll through your Facebook feed and you will be immediately inundated with holiday cheer. And while the holiday season is undoubtedly a time for joy, for many, the holidays can be an extremely stressful time. For those struggling with addiction, the stress…read more

Santa Says Give Responsibly This Holiday Season

Give Responsibly This Holiday Season The holiday season is upon us and if Black Friday wasn’t enough to get all of your shopping done and you still have more to do, the Florida Council on Compulsive Gambling has an important message for you. Lottery tickets may be fun-filled and exciting presents, but they are not…read more