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Dallas Poker Rooms and Lawmakers Prepare for Battles

Written by Jennifer Newell
Last updated on
Jennifer Newell

Poker players in Texas are visiting poker rooms in the state in bigger numbers than ever before. From the Lodge to Texas Card House, poker clubs from Dallas to Houston are thriving with local players, while also attracting out-of-state players for tournaments.

Dare I say, it is one of the fastest growing poker markets in America.

Quite a few lawmakers in Texas want to expand gambling in the state, to legalize casinos and sports betting. With casinos would come poker rooms. At the same time, Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick opposes it and feels that his Republican party will toe the line. And in Dallas specifically, the City Council is in the middle of a court battle with two poker rooms and wants to use taxpayer money to fund the fight against poker.

This could be a pivotal year for Texas poker.

Where 2022 Left Off

On the state level, Texas State Representative Gene Wu filed an interesting bill in November 2022. HB732 would revise the current gambling code, changing the word “place” to “residence” in one place and “dwelling” in another.

On its face, this change would make it more difficult for Texas poker rooms to defend their membership clubs. They currently use the “private place” phrase in the law to mean that they can use a membership club as that private place. However, it will be much different to try to justify that the clubs are “private residences.”

Wu contended, however, that the bill was written incorrectly and is being redrafted for reintroduction to the legislature. His goal is to separate home games from commercial games. And while commercial games, like those held in current poker rooms, will need to be licensed, Wu wants that to be legal. He said it is part of a larger push for legalizing a broader swath of gambling in Texas.

Meanwhile, on the local level in Dallas, city officials’ infighting has put Texas Card House and Shuffle 214 in legal jeopardy. While the rooms were in full compliance with city regulations, and their operations were permitted and licensed, a building inspector shut down Texas Card House in January 2022. Said inspector alleged that the Board of Adjustment had no right to issue the permit in the first place.

The issue went to a civil district court, wherein the judge ruled against the card rooms. Judge Eric Moye said that the Board of Adjustment “abused its discretion” and made an illegal decision to award the certificate of occupancy.

An appeal is in the works in the Court of Appeals for the Fifth District.

Taxpayers Pay

The city of Dallas had to support Chief Building Inspector Andrew Espinoza. In the original court case late last year, the city was allowed to spend up to $73K to fight the card rooms. That limit was raised to $200K, though Dallas Morning News reported that only $27K had been paid out as of the end of 2022.

Note, however, that the district court decision pertained only to the Texas Card House. The Shuffle 214 case will hit a courthouse in the summer of 2023.

In addition, the city of Dallas sued Poker House of Dallas in November. The city said that the business is listed as a strip club and hasn’t updated its certificate of occupancy since becoming a poker room.

Not all council members are on board with the potential spend, which could increase to $600K for all pending cases. That money will come from Dallas taxpayers.

Gambling Supporters

Some lawmakers want legal gambling in Texas via casinos (with poker rooms) and sports betting. State Senator Carol Alvarado of Houston has been filing bills to do just that since 2009. In November 2022, she filed another bill. The introduction to SJR17 reads:

“Proposing a constitutional amendment to foster economic development and job growth and to provide tax relief and funding for education and public safety by creating the Texas Gaming Commission, authorizing and regulating casino gaming at a limited number of destination resorts and facilities licensed by the commission, authorizing sports wagering, requiring occupational licenses to conduct casino gaming, and requiring the imposition of a tax.”

In effect, the bill would leave the decision to Texas voters.

Alvarado told local ABC13 that it would give Texans the choice to authorize casinos for largely populated cities: Dallas, Austin, Houston, and San Antonio. “It would have several components,” she said, “starting with a four-to-five-star hotel, a complex for conventions, conferences, and entertainment, restaurants, and shops.”

“Texans love to gamble,” she Alvarado added. “I guarantee, you go to Louisiana, to any casino, and the majority of license plates are going to be from Texas.”

The Democrat is not alone, though, as Republican State Representative John Kuempel is joining her to make a bipartisan, bicameral push for legal Texas gambling.

Patrick Not on Board

As much as Alvarado and Kuempel believe there is momentum behind the gambling bill, Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick would like to throw water on that idea. In a late-December interview, he said he didn’t see any movement for a gambling bill.

More specifically, Patrick said that a Republican hadn’t filed a bill in the Republican-led Texas Senate. To move a bill, a fair share of Republicans would need to be on board. That sentiment, however, was prior to Kuempel agreeing to work with Alvarado. While Kuempel is not in the Senate, the bipartisan effort might inspire a senator to file a companion bill to SJR17 in the Senate.

That Republican support might be for sale. The Houston Chronicle reported that there are more than 300 registered lobbyists in Texas working on gambling issues. Las Vegas Sands, formerly owned by Sheldon Adelson, now has 74 of those lobbyists on its payroll. And interestingly, Patrick has received $225K from a Sands-created PAC, which helped him win reelection in November 2022.

There may be some meetings in Patrick’s future.

 

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