Former Macomb sheriff's official Rick Kalm helped shepherd online gambling in Michigan
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Michigan Gaming Board Executive Director Rick Kalm said he is pleasantly surprised with the response to online gambling in the state.
Since internet wagering went into effect Jan. 22, nearly $1 billion has been wagered in both sports and casino-style betting online, as of March 31, according to state records.
“It’s going gangbusters,” he said. “The numbers have been unbelievable.”
Online sports betting in particular has taken off, although the amount of taxes paid to the state and city on sports betting is significantly lower than casino-style gaming due to payouts for sports-betting winners. Kalm said the typical profit margin in sports betting is about 6 percent.
The amount of internet sports betting through Detroit casino and tribal betting sites has been $776 million, with $302 million wagered in February and $359 million wagered in March, according to state records. But due to payouts and promotions, that has resulted in only $790,000 in taxes paid to the state and $480,000 to the city of Detroit.
For casino-style gambling on the internet, the gross receipts for the three Detroit casinos and nine tribal casinos has been $204 million, according to state figures. With a higher profit margin, that translated into $35.6 million in state taxes and $10.5 in city of Detroit taxes. Gross receipts increased from $79.7 million in February to $95 million in March.
Kalm, 63, the executive director since 2007, will leave the post within a month and will be replaced by one of his four deputies, Henry Williams, who whose proposed appointment last week by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer must be confirmed by state lawmakers.
Kalm worked as an officer in the Macomb County Sheriff’s Office for 31 years, serving as former sheriff Mark Hackel's chief of staff before leaving for the state post. He was first appointed by Jennifer Granholm when she was governor to a six-year term in 2007 that was extended another six years by Rick Snyder's administration in 2013. In the position, he manages 150 to 160 employees.
Kalm’s last term ended in June 2019, and he didn’t want to serve another six years due to his age but wanted to remain in the post “to see online gaming through” to its inception. So he and Whitmer agreed he would remain on board temporarily.
“I asked to ride out the implementation of online gaming,” he said. “In its first 2-/2 months, it’s been highly successful.”
Online gaming was approved in December 2019 and the rules were finalized within a year.
Kalm believes the time from approval to execution went faster than expected partly because of the COVID-19 pandemic. His office was tasked with writing the extensive rules based on the new laws. His expectation of objections and wrangling didn’t come to fruition. Struggling casinos were suffering financially and needed the additional income as quickly as possible.
“I was amazed we got so much cooperation from the commercial and tribal casinos, and got it going without a hitch,” he said in an interview. “I think everybody was done with COVID.”
Also contributing to the relatively quick approval was that Michigan modeled its rules from those in other states such as New Jersey, Nevada and Indiana, he said. Casino operators were familiar with the rules and didn’t object.
With 12 casinos currently taking bets online, three more tribal casinos are in the process of adding it to complete the total number of participants at 15.
Kalm, who previously resided in Romeo, now lives in Clay Township outside of Algonac in St. Clair County. Gaming Board offices are located in Detroit and Lansing.
He plans to remain involved in the casino industry.
Of Williams, Kalm said in a news release, “I have worked closely with Henry for 14 years and promoted him to his current MGCB position as deputy director. I believe Gov. Whitmer has made a good choice in appointing Henry to be the next executive director of the Michigan Gaming Control Board.”
"The mission of the Gaming Control Board is to ensure the conduct of fair, honest gaming,” Whitmer said. “With the nomination of Henry Williams, I am confident that the board will continue protecting and advancing the interests of Michiganders and the state.”
Williams, a Detroit resident, has overseen the casino operations division, where he provides oversight of the enforcement section, employee licensing, gaming lab and the disassociated persons program. Williams has worked for the board since 2001, previously serving as a regulation and enforcement officer, regulation manager of the employee licensing section. His prior jobs included juvenile justice worker, family independence specialist, protective services worker and probation officer.
