Money can buy a lot of things, especially in the world of politics. Casino magnate and billionaire Sheldon Adelson has shown that it may take time, perseverance, and very large sums of money, but it can be done. His dream of banning internet gambling – in one way or another
Illinois was close last year. There was a strong bill championed by State Representative Robert Rita and others, there were hearings, and there was widespread support for the sports betting part of the bill. Online poker and casino games were also included in that gambling expansion bill, along with new
During the holidays, word spread that the US Department of Justice had written a reversal of a pivotal 2011 Wire Act decision. The new opinion from the DOJ’s Office of Legal Counsel reportedly overturned that decision, which had allowed states the unequivocal right to offer online lottery ticket sales and
It may be tough to remember, but it did happen. West Virginia did offer up online gaming legislation in the past, back in early 2017, in fact. It was easily missed in any news cycle, though, because the bill garnered no support from the majority of the legislature and died
Once upon a time, California appeared to be the state most likely to legalize online poker. There were bills introduced each year, and the majority of lawmakers saw the benefits of regulating the game, especially when Nevada did it and the possibility of sharing poker liquidity looked more realistic. And
One could say that 2018 was a year of adjustments for the Poker Alliance. It started the year as the PPA (Poker Players Alliance) but with more financial troubles than at any time in the past decade, and it ended as the Poker Alliance, a new group financed by Poker
As 2018 came to a close, online poker legislation in New York was at rest again, having endured another year of inaction that killed the bill. Several years of hope and potential were once again dashed. One of the primary concerns going into 2019 was whether there would be a
What was once a booming industry that seemed to have no limits is now a niche market that is struggling to maintain its presence, much less grow. US online poker has faced its share of struggles since Black Friday in 2011, and the year of 2019 could be pivotal in
The American online poker industry is officially zero for zero in 2018. Oh, but what about Michigan, you ask? Didn’t lawmakers work until late into the last night of the legislative session the week before Christmas to pass a bill to legalize online poker and casino games, you ask? Yes.
Last year, the attempt to predict which states might join the ranks of those with legalized online poker was not very successful. In fact, only one state actually passed such legislation in 2018, but at the very last minute, on December 28, that state’s governor vetoed the bill. Oh, Michigan!
So wrong. At the end of 2017, I posted a list of states that were most likely to legalize online poker in the new US market in 2018, as well as a list of those that were long shots but had a chance to make some progress toward the ultimate
It’s been in the works for months. In fact, it’s been in the minds of some members of Congress since the moment the United States Supreme Court overturned PASPA in May 2018, allowing states to regulate sports betting per their constituents’ wishes. After months of talking about it and fairly
