Casino parlors in New York could turn into “21” clubs.
Two state lawmakers are pushing a bill to raise the gambling age from 18 to 21 as New York voters decide this fall on whether to legalize Vegas-style casinos here, The Post has learned.
New York is one of the few states where 18-to-20-year-olds are allowed to bet at gambling parlors — including Aqueduct’s Resorts World and Yonkers’ Empire City racinos.
Gamblers have to be 21 or over to play the slots or put down chips at table games in New Jersey’s Atlantic City, Foxwoods or Mohegan Sun in Connecticut or casinos in Pennsylvania and Nevada.
Assemblyman Philip Goldfeder and Sen. Joseph Addabbo, two Queens Democrats whose districts include the Aqueduct racino, are championing the proposed law.
“We need to set standards as we consider an expansion of casino gambling,” said Goldfeder (D-Queens).
Goldfedder and other civic leaders said they’ve seen young gamblers under 21 at the Aqueduct facility.
“It’s a little unsettling to see gamblers there as young as 18,” Goldfedder said.
Signs at Resorts World clearly state that customers must be at least 18 to enter the premises — but 21 to buy booze at the bars.
Goldfeder said there are schools nearby on Rockaway Boulevard.
“I don’t want to see students gambling away their money. We want to make gambling more suitable to the community. When you put a casino in a residential area, you have to have protections,” he said.