Study Bill on Intrastate Online Poker in California Moves Forward
April 22nd, 2008
A study bill to guide the regulation of online poker in the state of California has been unanimously passed by the Assembly Governmental Organization Committee and will now move forward to the Assembly Appropriations Committee.
Democrat assembly member Lloyd Levine presented Assembly Bill 2026 to the committee, asking for a study to be commissioned with the goal of bringing transparency and accountability to the emerging world of online poker.
The bill directs the California Gambling Control Commission to work together with the Department of Justice to perform a study on authorizing intrastate online poker in California, with findings to be reported to the Legislature by June 30th 2009.
Despite last year’s passing of the UIGEA which prevents U.S. financial institutions from processing payments to and from online gambling businesses, Mr. Levine believes intrastate online poker in California could be allowed as the Act does exempt three categories of transactions: intratribal, intrastate, and interstate horseracing.
As defined in the Act, intrastate transactions are bets or wagers that are made exclusively within a single state, whose state laws or regulations contain certain safeguards regarding such transactions, expressly authorize the bet or wager and the method by which the bet or wager is made, and do not violate any provisions of applicable federal gaming statues. The exemption in UIGEA is consistent with the idea that state governments have the primary responsibility for determining what forms of gambling may legally take place within their borders, a right given to them under the 10th amendment of the U.S. Constitution
Specifically the study would look at regulatory oversight and licensing, technological issues, underage and problem gambling matters, methods of play and types of games that could be legally offered. The study would also look at economic benefits to state and local governments, and how online poker would be conducted and operated.
Mr. Levine said. "Millions of people in California are playing poker online for money. It’s illegal according to the federal government but they are still doing it nonetheless. Right now they are gambling in such a way that they have no protection. The servers are in places like Bermuda and Isle of Man. That means Californians have no protection if something goes wrong."
Mr. Levine states that AB 2026 would study the ability of the state to protect Californians by licensing and regulating intrastate poker websites. By authorizing online poker not only would it allow California to protect its consumers, but it would also allow law enforcement agencies in the state to work with the industry in preventing underage playing, identity theft, and fraud.
Furthermore, Mr. Levine believes that AB 2026 would provide economic opportunities for the state, and in the current fiscal condition the state is in, he feels it is important to look at all possible sources of revenues including authorizing online poker in California.
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