Peter C. Harvey, Attorney General

Division of Consumer Affairs
Reni Erdos, Director

For Immediate Release:
July 6, 2004

For Further Information Contact:
Jeff Lamm, Genene Morris
973-504-6327

NEWARK - Bill Yorke, Executive Officer of the New Jersey Legalized Games of Chance Control Commission (LGCCC), has been appointed Eastern Regional Director of the North American Gaming Regulators Association (NAGRA).

The LGCCC oversees approximately 8,000 charitable, educational, religious, patriotic, public-service and senior citizen organizations currently registered to conduct legalized games of chance, which include bingo games and raffles. The LGCCC determines the eligibility of organizations to conduct legalized games of chance, registers these organizations, and enforces the laws governing the $120-million-dollar-a-year state industry commonly known as "charitable gaming."

The Commission also oversees the operations of approximately 1,000 Amusement Games operated at amusement parks, seashore boardwalks and county fairs.

Yorke, a resident of Clark, has been LGCCC Executive Officer since 1988. His accomplishments as LGCCC Executive Officer include the introduction of progressive jackpot bingo and pull-tab instant raffles in 1995. Both marked the first major additions to permitted types of games in over 40 years. Yorke joined the LGCCC in 1975 as an investigator.

"Bill's peers recognize what we in New Jersey have known for years, that he is an innovator as well as a leading regulator," said Reni Erdos, Consumer Affairs Director. "His appointment with NAGRA is well deserved and a tribute to the energy and enthusiasm he brings to the job at Consumer Affairs."

Yorke's two-year appointment as Eastern Regional Director of NAGRA began on July 1. The eastern region includes all states east of the Mississippi River.

Established in 1984, NAGRA is comprised of federal, state, local, tribal, and provincial government agencies who are responsible for the regulation of legalized gaming activities.

Yorke served as Secretary of NAGRA in 1988 and 1989. He served on the NAGRA Bingo Standards Committee, which developed widely accepted standards for the operation of bingo. He has developed and administers training programs for state, county, and municipal regulatory and law enforcement personnel in New Jersey. His course curriculum is utilized by Rutgers University relative to the licensing, administration and enforcement of pertinent gaming laws.