Senate Rules Committee advances Stacy Baxter to Senate floor after confirmation hearing

The Senate Rules Committee voted 5-0 on Jan. 29 to advance Stacy Baxter, a governorappointed nominee to the California Gambling Control Commission, to the full Senate for final confirmation following a public hearing and committee questions about the agency's regulatory role, a proposed advertising regulation and the status of the Gambling Control Fund.

Baxter, who told the committee she was appointed by Governor Gavin Newsom, said she is a career state regulator with 32 years of state service and nearly nine years as the executive director of the Bureau of Gambling Control before taking her current role. "It is simply an honor to be here before you today and to have been appointed by Governor Newsom to this position," Baxter said. She said she would "make decisions with an open mind, considering all stakeholder input and with facts and relevant laws and regulations as my guiding principles."

Committee members pressed Baxter on several topics that have drawn industry and tribal attention. Senators asked her to…