On Thursday, March 9th, 2011 William Horne, the Nevada Assembly Majority Whip, introduced a bill that would legalize online poker within the state of Nevada, thus setting up an intrastate poker network for the players in the state. This comes several months after the failed attempt by federal Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nevada) to push through an online gaming bill during the lame duck session of the last sitting Senate in December.
How PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker Would Benefit
Unlike Harry Reid's attempted bill back in 2010, and even Congressman Barney Frank's dropped online gaming regulation bill, the Nevada intrastate bill would not contain any blackout period that would block existing online poker rooms like PokerStars from entering the market unrestricted. This would surely delight players in knowing they will still have options as far as staying with their favorite poker rooms.
The bill as it is proposed right now states very clearly, "The Commission shall not deny a license to an operator of internet poker." The bill also says that this move to not deny a license to an online operator applies to non-U.S.-based companies, which is nearly all existing online poker rooms and networks operating today.
In almost all proposed online regulation bills some sort of blackout period has been present. These were created to help brick and mortar casinos get a leg up on the existing competition. In this regard it must be said that PokerStars and Full Tilt's main competitor, PartyGaming, has reportedly signed deals with several casino operators in the U.S. Just this past week Caesars Entertainment inked a deal with 888 Holdings in an online partnership and awaits certification from the Nevada Gaming Commission.
While any U.S. state's move to legalizing online poker is a sign of progress in the regulation of the game, the fact that Nevada, the undeclared capital of gambling around the world, has moved towards regulation means that the powerful gaming lobbyists have seen that regulation can become more profitable than fighting it. When you can't beat them, join them.
More U.S. States Pushing for Regulation
Over the past several months more states have put forth bills to their state legislatures to regulate online poker in an intrastate fashion. New Jersey has gotten the closest with their bill being passed in the legislature with a very high majority, but was summarily vetoed by Governor Chris Christie. Instead of letting the legislature vote through the bill without the governor, Christie has requested that the question of legalizing online poker in New Jersey be put on the next general election ballot in the form of a referendum.
There is also rumors that cash strapped California is looking at online poker and online casinos as a viable means of tax revenue in an intrastate fashion as well. With New Jersey and Nevada looking to expand gambling online for their residents there may be a time in the near future where an interstate online poker network can be set up opening the game up on a national level.
In the meantime the poker community waits to see if Nevada will serve as a beacon that will hopefully guide the federal government into regulating online poker. Even if lawmakers have a moral disagreement toward poker and gambling they cannot escape the sizable tax revenues that can be earned.
David Tubbs - David is a graduate of the University of Waterloo with an Honours B.A. in History with a focus on medieval Europe. While his formal ...
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