GPWA Times Magazine - Issue 35 - June 2016

California online poker bill heads to Assembly by Dan Podheiser The regulation of online poker in California took a key step forward on April 27 when the Assembly Governmental Organization Committee unan- imously passed AB 2863. This is the second straight year that the state legislative com- mittee has passed a bill that aims to regulate online poker. The bill will now head to the full Assembly. The bill, introduced and spon- sored by committee chair Adam Gray, received unanimous support from the state’s horse racing industry, which has his- torically opposed online poker legislation. But AB 2863 prom- ises the horse racing industry a $60 million subsidy in ex- change for the industry giving up the ability to operate its own online poker sites. “The question of how to regulate iPoker has been in front of the Legislature for nearly a decade,” Gray said in a press release after the vote. “We have not rushed this process. We have taken the time necessary to thoroughly understand and respond to the concerns put forth by stakeholders. Through this process, we have created a coalition that is willing to acknowledge the problem and support a compre- hensive solution.” Gray also addressed the need for consumer protections in California, noting that millions of residents already play on- line poker on offshore, unregulated sites. “We know unequivocally that Californians are playing these games online every single day on websites that provide zero consumer protections,” Gray said. The bill would require the California Gambling Control Commission, in consultationwith the California Department of Justice, to draft regulations for operating an online pok- er site. During questions following testimony, Gray said the next step to resolve the bill is suitability, promising that the bill would be updated with suitability language by the time it comes up for a vote before the full Assembly. Many of those who are opposed to the bill, including repre- sentatives from California Native American tribes, are not happy that the bill lacks a “bad actor” provision that would prevent companies like PokerStars from operating in the state. PokerStars operated in the unregulated U.S. market after the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act was passed in 2006. Once the bill reaches an Assembly vote, it will need a two- thirds majority to reach the state Senate. Webmaster News & Quotables 9