Al Williams Brings Civil Rights Grit to NCLGS Presidency
The new president of the National Council of Legislators from Gaming States has faced tougher battles than prediction markets. Al Williams plans to bring that same determination to protecting regulated gaming.
A Long Road to the Table
Al Williams has been getting things done in difficult rooms for a long time. He walked in the 1963 March on Washington. He joined the march from Selma to Montgomery in 1965. He served in Vietnam, was jailed 17 times for his activism, and lost friends both overseas and in the struggle for civil rights. So when the newly elected President of the National Council of Legislators from Gaming States describes his philosophy as doing “what needs to be done to get a place at the table,” he is not speaking in corporate metaphor.
Williams, who also serves as a Georgia state representative, was elected to lead NCLGS at the organization’s recent Summer Meeting in San Diego, stepping up from his previous role as Vice President. As reported by CDC Gaming, he came to the organization somewhat by chance, attending a conference a few years back without knowing much about it. What he found impressed him.
“Listening to the pros and cons, I was impressed with the bipartisan nature of it,” Williams told CDC Gaming. “There was honest and sincere work toward coming up with the best products and improving existing products.”
That bipartisan culture is something he intends to protect. “You check your extreme partisanship at the door, because we’re not here to argue political questions,” he said. “We’re here to discuss gaming, and it’s worked for us.”
Prediction Markets Are on Notice
Among the most pressing items on Williams’s agenda is the growing presence of prediction markets, a category of financial-style wagering that has expanded rapidly and largely outpaced regulatory frameworks designed for traditional sports betting and casino gaming.
His assessment is blunt. “I think that it’s a bridge too far,” Williams told CDC Gaming. “The lack of control, there’s got to be some regulations. There is not. I think that it’s only going to get worse. We’ve got to deal with it.”
For NCLGS, which positions itself on the front lines of state-level gaming policy, prediction markets represent exactly the kind of regulatory vacuum the organization was built to address. Williams draws a clear line between innovation and accountability, and he is not inclined to let the former outrun the latter.
Georgia’s Closed Market as a Cautionary Note
Williams also pointed to his home state as a case study in what happens when lawmakers look away. Georgia does not have legalized gambling, and according to Williams, that absence does not stop Georgians from gambling. It just stops the state from collecting any tax revenue from it.
“We lose a lot of tax revenue in Georgia because folks find a way to (gamble),” he said, as reported by CDC Gaming. “We invite illegal markets by having a closed market. Prohibition should have been a lesson for everybody in this country and what the law can do and what kind of element it produces.”
It is a pragmatic argument that sidesteps moral hand-wringing in favor of observable outcomes. Legal, regulated markets create accountability. Closed ones create opportunity for illegal operators. Williams has seen enough history to know which direction that tends to go.
The Work Ahead
Beyond prediction markets and the legal-versus-illegal market debate, Williams outlined a broad mandate for NCLGS: safeguarding the health of the gaming industry, pushing operators toward better practices, and most urgently, making sure minors cannot access gambling products. These are not new concerns for the organization, but they carry fresh weight under a president who has spent decades watching what happens when institutions fail to enforce their stated values.
Williams described the people who show up to NCLGS conferences as self-selecting for seriousness. “People who are not serious don’t usually show up,” he told CDC Gaming. “We come to take care of business.”
For an organization navigating one of the most complicated regulatory moments in American gaming history, that is probably the right disposition to bring to the presidency.
Who is Al Williams and what is his new role?
Al Williams is a Georgia state representative and civil rights activist who was recently elected President of the National Council of Legislators from Gaming States, or NCLGS, at the organization's Summer Meeting in San Diego. He previously served as the group's Vice President.
What is NCLGS's position on prediction markets?
According to Williams, as reported by CDC Gaming, NCLGS views unregulated prediction markets as a serious concern. Williams called them 'a bridge too far' and said the lack of regulatory oversight will only make problems worse over time.
What other gaming issues will NCLGS focus on under Williams?
Williams told CDC Gaming the organization will work to protect the health of the broader gaming industry, hold operators to better practices, and ensure minors cannot access gambling. He also highlighted the need for more states, including his home state of Georgia, to consider legal gambling frameworks to curb illegal markets.