National Council on Problem Gambling Seeing Turnover as Executive Director Resigns
NCPG Executive Director Heather Maurer resigned after less than a year, amid leadership turnover and controversy over accepting Kalshi investment.Summary
The National Council on Problem Gambling (NCPG) faces leadership upheaval as Executive Director Heather Maurer announced her resignation after serving less than a year in the role she took over in November 2025 from Keith Whyte, who left in January 2025. Maurer will remain through October 16 to assist with the transition, but no reason for her departure has been publicly disclosed, and the NCPG has begun searching for a replacement. Her resignation came less than a week after Director of Programs Jaime Costello also departed, with Costello explaining on LinkedIn that the working environment "shifted in ways I could no longer reconcile with how I believe this work should be done."
These resignations occur amid significant controversy over the NCPG's decision to accept a $2 million, two-year investment from prediction market operator Kalshi, which joined the organization as a platinum member in May 2026 under a newly created Financial Services & Trading subcategory. Multiple state gaming regulators withdrew their memberships in protest, including the Michigan Gaming Control Board, the Nevada Council on Problem Gambling, Ohio Casino Control Commission, and Washington's Evergreen Council on Problem Gambling. Despite this, NCPG Board President Derek Longmeier affirmed the organization's neutrality on whether prediction markets should be legal while stressing that NCPG considers them "functionally gambling" and remains committed to preventing gambling-related harm wherever it occurs. He also emphasized that donor engagement does not mean endorsement.
(Source：Sports Betting Dime)