Few State Online Poker Bills Remain Alive in 2021
Several states started 2021 with the intention of legalizing online poker. Even more states toyed with the idea of igaming or opened the door to discussions of it alongside sports betting.
When it all came down to it, only a few states survived the legislative battles with an igaming bill in hand that included more than sports betting and daily fantasy sports.
Bills advocating for state-regulated online poker failed in Indiana, Kentucky, and North Dakota.
Illinois and Missouri bills are likely to die this week as legislative sessions end.
That leaves Connecticut as a very likely addition to the ever-so-slowly-growing new US online poker market. All other hopes are on hold for 2022.
Here’s a look at the major opportunities for online poker in 2021 in alphabetical order.
Connecticut: Bill Still Alive
This state’s trials and tribulations in all attempts to expand gambling have been fraught with problems throughout the past few years. In an effort to build a new casino, Connecticut battled former US Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke and MGM Resorts for years, with Zinke ultimately fired for ethics violations related to MGM lobbying in a very complicated years-long kerfuffle.
Meanwhile, Connecticut Senator Catherine Osten had been putting forth bills each year to legalize everything from sports betting to online lottery games, internet casino gaming to online poker. The Mashantucket Pequot Tribe and Mohegan Tribe both supported the moves but needed Governor Ned Lamont to be willing to amend their tribal gaming compacts to make it all happen. Lamont had been unwilling to do anything until the MGM legal battles concluded.
When the pandemic hit in 2020, the tribes made a special plea for an executive order to allow online gambling to garner revenue during casino closures. Lamont declined for several reasons.
-1. The legislature must approve such a significant policy decision
-2. The decision was more significant with Connecticut residents in financial distress due to the pandemic.
-3. Connecticut was not prepared to establish and enforce an igaming regulatory and financial framework.
So, Osten entered 2021 with the same fervor to legalize igaming and authorize sportsbooks. She and a bipartisan group of cosponsors introduced SB.146 “to authorize sports wagering, online casino gaming, online lottery and online keno in this state.”
The first thing that needed to happen was for Lamont to meet with tribal leaders to hash out their differences and agree to the terms of new gaming compacts. By mid-March, that task was complete and an agreement in place. The igaming operators would deliver 18% of gross gaming revenue to the state, generating “tens of millions of dollars in new revenue,” per Lamont.
On April 12, the bill went to the Senate alongside its complimentary bills – HB.6451 outlining the tribal agreement with Lamont, HB.6512 with consumer protections for sports betting, and SB.570 to build the Bridgeport casino and sportsbook.
The last day of the Connecticut legislative session is June 5.
It is notable that online poker is not specifically mentioned in the 2021 bills.
According to the Connecticut Lottery Corp., 15 entities responded to its request for qualifications, issued on April 12, seeking “experienced sports betting solution providers for online and retail sports wagering systems and services.”https://t.co/dhzy14ySVd
— Hartford Business (@HartfordBiz) April 28, 2021
Illinois: Bill Alive but Facing Deadline
Lawmakers in Illinois have been considering regulated online poker since 2017. That year, a bill to do just that for poker and casino games passed the Senate by a large margin (42-10) in May but failed to progress any further. State Representative Michael Zalewski pushed his H.479 in 2018, but it transformed into SB.7 that also included sports betting and daily fantasy sprots. Representative Robert Rita championed it all the way to an October hearing that year, but it didn’t move past a hearing.
By the summer of 2019, the Illinois legislature legalized retail sportsbooks and a handful of online ones. They began to go live in 2020.
Meanwhile, online poker and casino games didn’t even garner enough support for a bill proposal.
Enter 2021, a new year and a pandemic brought internet gaming back to the table. Representatives Rita and Jonathan Carroll introduced HB.3142, the Internet Gaming Act. The purpose was to allow casinos and racetracks to offer internet gaming, including poker and casino games, taxed at 12%, and effective immediately upon passage.
HB.3142 immediately went to the House Rules Committee, and one month later, it traveled to the Executive Committee. At the end of March, Rule 19a (failure to meet a third-reading deadline) prompted its re-referral back to the Rules Committee.
A positive Illinois House Executive Committee hearing at the end of April gave life to the Internet Gaming Act, per Online Poker Report. The reasons for the positive assessment were:
-1. John Pappas, former PPA Executive Director and now founder/CEO of Corridor Consulting, testified on behalf of the iDEA Growth organization dedicated to legalizing igaming in the US. Pappas knows the industry inside and out and effectively advocated for online poker and casino games.
-2. Penn National Gaming VP Jeff Kaplan testified to the benefits of igaming to their land-based casino partners. He and Pappas slapped down the concern of igaming “cannibalization” of casino revenue.
-3. According to Pappas, Illinois could generate $250M in the first year of igaming and at least $1B in the first five years.
-4. The majority of speakers advocated for the Internet Gaming Act.
-5. Even those who suggested the removal of in-person registration for igaming from the bill had little concern that the change couldn’t be made with a simple amendment.
At this point, this House bill must advance out of Senate Committees by May 14 – this week. If this happens, it will remain on the table for possible passage until May 31. If not, the General Assembly adjourns.
Will Illinois be the next state to legalize iGaming? A House committee heard mostly pro-online gambling opinions in the testimony of 33 virtual attendees todayhttps://t.co/vYhcwqNa02@yanni_dc @mjzalewski
@OPRupdate— (((HeatherFletcher))) (@HeatherReporter) April 28, 2021
Indiana: Bill Dead
They said there was a chance. Indiana hadn’t been on many analysts’ lists of states most likely to legalize online poker and casino gaming, but it actually came into play several years ago.
It started in 2019 when Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb signed a bill into law to legalize sports betting. While many states have limited their markets to retail sports betting only, Indiana took a broad look at the possibilities and allows for online sports wagering, too. The first land-based sportsbooks then opened just months later – in September 2019 – with online sites live by October 2019.
There were signs that more igaming could follow:
-1. Hoosier Lottery of Indiana began examining online lottery options in the summer of 2019.
-2. Kindred (Unibet) signed a deal in early 2020 with Caesars for online sports betting with the hopes of expanding into more types of igaming.
-3. State Senator Jon Ford told PlayIndiana in September 2020 that he was working on a bill to legalize online casinos, though online poker wasn’t included in his plan.
-4. Ford started campaigning for his bill in October 2020 for $45M-$60M annual igaming tax revenue.
Ford followed through, along with Senators Ron Grooms and Chris Garten. They introduced S.417 on January 25, 2021 for interactive gaming, and it aimed to authorize interactive gaming – including online poker – by riverboat and racetrack owners and operators. The tax would be 18%, and the bill would be effective July 1, 2021.
The bill went to the Committee on Rules and Legislative Procedure. Ford hoped for a hearing in the Senate Public Policy Committee, but it never made it that far. The bill died in mid-February when it didn’t move before the session deadline.
Pour one out for Indiana's online casino gambling bill, which died in committee today. https://t.co/4WBn7Nxgdc
— Matthew Kredell (@MatthewKredell) February 18, 2021
Missouri: Bill Alive but Facing Deadline
Several members of the Missouri legislature entered 2020 with the intention of legalizing sports betting, some also including online gambling in that plan. By the first week of January, four members filled bills:
-Rep. Wes Rogers: HB.619
-Senator Denny Hoskins: SB.18–>98
-Senator Tony Luetkemeyer: SB.217
-Senator Caleb Rowden: SB.256
And then there was Rep. Dan Houx. He filed a more comprehensive bill that included live and online sportsbooks, online casinos, and online poker. Houx introduced HB.1364 on March 1, and its first reading that day followed with a second reading the next day.
The bill hopes to change the law and add 25 new sections related to gaming. Essentially, the bill will authorize sports betting, igaming, and online poker. Notably, the game differentiates between games of chance and games of skill, the latter offering “an opportunity for the player to use such player’s reason, foresight, dexterity, sagacity, design, information or strategy to favorably increase the player’s expected return.” This category includes poker, blackjack, craps, Caribbean stud, pai gow, and sports betting.
Interactive gaming would be taxed at 12%, and the bill would be effective on August 28, 2021.
There are no hearings scheduled, and the last day of the session is this week – Friday, May 14.
(Author’s note: This is my home state. This won’t pass. The Missouri Senate can’t even pass a law to outlaw illegal gambling. Our legislature is a hot mess.)
Gaming legislation at the Missouri Capitol appears to be dead this session, due to the impasse involving slot machines. The battle over slots involves two powerful Republicans who are allies on most issues. My story. @DaveSchatz26 @DLHoskins #moleg https://t.co/makuh5cghV
— Brian Hauswirth (@Brianontheair) May 6, 2021
Kentucky: Bill Died
The past few years have seen an unlikely online poker possibility in Kentucky. And yes, it is the same Kentucky that sued PokerStars and continues to pursue more than $1B from the company for offering online poker from 2006 to 2011.
On the other hand, Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear has been pushing for legalized online poker and casino games, as well as sports betting, since 2018. He decided it would be a good revenue stream and a potential solution to the state’s pension problems. Beshear asked lawmakers to put forward a bill.
State Representative Adam Koenig did just that in early 2019, proposing comprehensive legalization and regulation of sports wagering and igaming in the form of HB.175. It actually swept through a very positive committee vote but died shortly thereafter. A sports betting bill from Koenig in 2020 failed as well.
Despite Beshear’s support to match that of many legislators, the horse racing lobby is strong (understatement) in Kentucky. They fear that other forms of gambling, especially on sports, will detract from horse betting. Since the horse racing industry is already hurting, many organizations representing it claimed that gambling expansion will cause irreparable harm. Add that to lobbying from very conservative and religious groups decrying the downfall of civilization due to gambling expansion, and the bill suddenly lost its support.
Koenig stepped up again in 2021, introducing several bills, including HB.241 as the one proposing online poker and casinos. It had support from the start on January 9:
-Total of 18 sponsors
-Actuarial analysis from Kentucky Judicial Form Retirement System
-Corrections impact statement from Department of Corrections
-Local mandate not yet released
However, opponents argued that the fate of HHRs – historical horse racing machines – must be addressed before anything else. The Kentucky Supreme Court ruled them illegal, which concerns lawmakers who want that revenue back. It had grown more than 400% in the past five years and was set to total $3.6B in 2021. With that industry larger than lottery tickets and horse racing combined, the focus remains on resolving the HHR issue.
Koenig was one of those focused on HHRs.
The Kentucky legislative session ended when March ended. HR.241 made no progress.
In Kentucky we now have legal lottery and slot machines, the two worst forms of gambling that are the hardest to win, most regressive and addictive
Meanwhile sports gambling, poker, etc where you actually can win are still illegal
Logic and reason is not our strong suit
— Matt Jones (@KySportsRadio) February 12, 2021
North Dakota: Bill Died
State Representative Jim Kasper of North Dakota has been a poker fan since 2003, a part of the Moneymaker Effect. He has been trying to regulate online poker in his state since he first introduced a bill to that effect in 2005.
Kasper gave up for a few years for many reasons, but when the pandemic showed how economically vulnerable some states can be, he thought it was the right time to try again. He also knew that the results of the Wire Act case through the US court system remain positive. Seeing Michigan zoom into the online poker and gaming world recently was the final straw.
On January 14, 2021, Kasper introduced HCR.3012 to authorize and regulate online poker. Technically, the bill would have simply put it to a vote for the people of North Dakota to decide in the 2022 general election. Kasper also proposed HB.1389 to legalize live poker throughout the state.
Everything moved along nicely.
-Passed Judiciary Committee 8-6-0 on February 18 (HB.3012)
-Passed Judiciary Committee 12-2-0 on February 18 (HB.1389)
-Passed House 54-40 on February 23 (HB.3012)
-Passed House 59-35 on February 23 (HB.1389)
-Failed Finance and Taxation Committee on March 29 (HB.3012)
-Failed Finance and Taxation Committee on March 29 (HB.1389)
-Failed Senate on March 30 0-47 (HB.3012)
-Failed Senate on March 30 0-46 (HB.1389)
Those bills, along with a separate sports betting bill, failed because “the upper chamber has shown a strong aversion to gambling bills,” per local media.
