Ronnie Jones
Independent Member, Compliance Committee
Mr. Jones is an experienced public safety professional, gaming regulatory, educator and public speaker. He joined PENN Entertainment’s Compliance Committee as an Independent Member in 2025.
Mr. Jones spent 45 years as a public servant in Louisiana, first as a member of the Louisiana State Police for 33 years, then as Chairman of the Louisiana Gaming Control Board for 7 years. He was the primary legislative coordinator for the Louisiana State Police when riverboat and video poker gaming were first approved in 1991 and was a member of the senior executive team which established the regulatory structure and oversaw gaming licensure. Later, in his role as LGCB Chair, Mr. Jones led a casino gaming task force and pushed for the first substantive changes in casino law in nearly a quarter of a century, which led to legislative changes and created the regulatory framework for moving legacy riverboat casinos onto land. He was also critical in establishing the framework which led to the legalization of sports betting in LA.
Mr. Jones was named North American Regulator of the Year in 2017 by the International Masters of Gaming Law and is a regular participant in Seton Hall Law School's Regulatory Bootcamp. He remains active in several professional associations and is a frequent participant on industry panels and on a variety of diverse topics including ethics, sexual trafficking, and responsible gaming.
Mr. Jones was also a highly respected adjunct university instructor for more than two decades at Southeastern Louisiana University and Tulane University, where he taught graduate and undergraduate courses. At the University of South Florida, he founded and taught a program in crisis communications for public safety officials for 33 years.
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