From the Kansas City Star

A near-total ban on advertising by charitable bingo games adopted as part of Missouri's state constitution has been overturned by a federal judge, the Kansas City Star reports.

The constitutional change was approved by Missouri voters in 1980. Because state-licensed casinos and the Missouri lottery are allowed to advertise, however, U.S. District Judge Howard F. Sachs ruled that the ban denied equal protection to bingo operators and was a violation of federally-protected commercial speech granted under the U.S. Constitution, the paper reports.

While this is good news for Missouri charities, there is already a regulation in place that limits bingo advertising expenses to 2 percent of revenues.

The Association of Charitable Games of Missouri, which represents 136 state-licensed bingo operations, filed the lawsuit last year against the Missouri Gaming Commission. The judge's ruling applies to all licensed operators.

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