Gibbons, Sandoval name new gaming board members

Gov. Jim Gibbons has named veteran Gaming Control Board employees Andrew Burnett and Shawn Reid to the control board.

Gibbons and Gov.-elect Brian Sandoval agreed on the selections jointly in a move to streamline the appointment process.

While existing members' terms expire Jan. 1, a new law changes the term of gaming control appointments to the end of January - which means the Gibbons appointments would last just one month. That change was made to allow a new governor the power to select his gaming board members instead of the outgoing governor.

A Gibbons spokesman said the two governors and their staffs jointly selected Burnett and Reid. Sandoval will reappoint them at the end of January.

They replace Dennis Neilander and Randall Sayre.

The third member of the board is Mark Lipparelli, whose term isn't over yet. Gibbons said he will serve as chairman.

Burnett, 41, is deputy chief of the Corporate Securities Division within the board. Before that he was a senior deputy attorney general assigned to gaming. Reid is currently chief of investigations for the board. He has been with the agency since 1990.

Dale Erquiaga of Sandoval's transition team said both men are experienced in Nevada's gaming regulatory system.

"With the industry in the economic condition it's in, we needed people vastly qualified," he said.

The Gaming Control Board is a three-member body which serves full time to manage the staff which regulates Nevada's gaming industry. They conduct investigations, license casinos and other gaming operations, license both key employees and major stockholders and collect gaming taxes and fees.

Gaming taxes and the casino Live Entertainment Tax make up just under one third of general fund revenues collected by Nevada.

Gaming Control Board members receive an annual salary of $139,222. The chairman receives $149,729.