Several States Considering Online Poker in 2024
As 2024 got underway, state-regulated online poker in the United States with the same number of participating states as the year before. No new states legalized online poker and/or casino games in 2023, though lawmakers in numerous states proposed bills.
There was some progress in the industry in 2023.
Michigan had signed the Multi-State Internet Gaming Agreement (MSIGA) the prior year, and PokerStars was the first – and only – operator to connect its Michigan poker site to another state, which was New Jersey.
And at the end of the year, West Virginia signed on to MSIGA. Having legalized online poker and casino games in 2019, West Virginia has yet to issue any online poker licenses. Online casinos have been running in the state for years, but poker operators didn’t see the benefit of launching in such a small state until its platform could be connected to those in other states. While no states have applied for a WV poker license yet, it seems likely that PokerStars, at least, will do so in 2024.
2024 Predictions
For reasons purportedly related to the governor being busy with election matters, Pennsylvania has yet to sign on to MSIGA. As a result, online poker revenue for 2023 dipped nearly 10% year-on-year. That downswing, though, makes it clear that liquidity is necessary for that segment of the igaming industry to thrive. It is very likely that Governor Josh Shapiro will cave to pressure and sign MSIGA this year.
If this happens, expect PokerStars to be the first to obtain permission to join its Pennsylvania site to others, specifically Michigan and New Jersey.
Speaking of liquidity, BetMGM has indicated that it will be connecting its Michigan and New Jersey poker sites this year. If it wants to run more satellites for live tournaments – perhaps those occurring in the summer in Las Vegas – it would behoove the company to launch the combined player pool in the spring, the earlier the better.
While WSOP has been silent its online poker expansion, it seems likely that Caesars would push WSOP.com to join its Michigan, Nevada, and New Jersey sites. The problem is that WSOP needs to upgrade its software to do this. In an effort to further bind itself to GGPoker, the WSOP appears to want to relaunch all of its sites on GGPoker software, but that could be a labor-intensive task. The odds seem favorable that WSOP/Caesars will do this, but it would be even more of an undertaking to do it prior to the summer World Series of Poker. Doing so would allow the WSOP to offer online bracelet events to NV, NJ, and MI on a single platform.
Predicting if new states will join the forever-burgeoning online poker realm in the US market requires hope beyond hope. Year after year, certain states – looking at you, New York – introduce bills that do not progress. Hope is alive for at least one state to join the group, but it’s anyone’s guess which one that might be.
New York – S.8185 & A.9198
The state of New York is like Lucy of Peanuts fame, holding out the football each year. And online poker fans are Charlie Brown, running to kick that ball, only to have it pulled away at the last minute. We, errr Charlie, lies there, disappointed yet again.
Yet and still, the industry perked its little ears when NY State Senator Joe Addabbo Jr. reintroduced his S.4856 bill at the beginning of January 2024 and Assemblyman J. Gary Pretlow did the same with a companion bill Assembly Bill 9198.
Addabbo took the reins, as he did in 2023, to try to push the bill. In fact, he delivered his latest effort less than two weeks into this year. It was Senate Bill 8185, which would authorize “interactive gaming and interactive lottery gaming in the state of New York.” More specifically, it would amend the current racing/pari-mutuel wagering/breeding law to allow for interactive poker and casino games, and it would amend the tax law to make way for lottery ticket sales online.
The combination of new revenue could deliver as much as $1 billion dollars for the state, according to Abbaddo. And that money would go a long way to helping with New York’s deficit that hovers near $4.5 billion.
Addabbo did push the issue with Governor Kathy Hochul when she prepared the state’s executive budget for the new year, but Hochul wasn’t having it. The fight will continue as the budget is amended and twisted through the legislature through the end of March, but Hochul seems resistant to putting igaming in the budget.
With that, Addabbo is left with S.8185 in the State Senate, where he can try to convince lawmakers – again – that the state’s casinos, especially the new ones, could benefit greatly from companion gaming online. He did amend the bill – now S.8185A – a few weeks after its introduction; he included an agreement to hire union workers for the live casino games.
Maryland – SB.565 & SB.603
The appearance of Maryland in this year’s list of possibilities was not entirely unexpected. Maryland State Senators Ronald Watson and Nancy King introduced a bill in 2023 to authorize internet gaming. The bill even had a hearing in the Budget and Taxation Committee in February. The focus was on the new revenue for Maryland, as those providing testimony also explained how geolocation technology and cross-promotion with land-based casinos would work.
The legislation failed to move forward, though, so Watson prepared a new bill for 2024. In fact, he introduced two of them during the last week of January. Both went directly to the Budget and Taxation Committee.
The first piece of legislation – SB.565 – puts together the outline of online gaming and lottery sales for the purpose of submitting it to the voters of Maryland. Passage of this bill would put it on the November 2024 ballot to let the people decide if they want online lottery tickets, casino games, and online poker. The gist of the proposal is that the state’s share of revenue would be used to fund Maryland’s public education system.
Secondly, there is SB.603, which would give the Maryland State Lottery and Gaming Control Commission the authority to issue igaming licenses, tax revenue, and enter into the multi-jurisdictional internet gaming agreements via MSIGA to allow operators to connect their online poker platforms across state lines. This bill is more detailed, including the following:
- Licenses will be issued to applicants that have maintained headquarters in Maryland for at least 10 years, presumably pertaining to the land-based casino partner of the online operator.
- Operators will employ at least 250 people in the state on a full-time basis.
- Operators must commit to spending at least $5M during the first year of licensing to build and operate a live gaming studio.
- License applicants will agree to pay $1M for the initial license, which will be valid for five years and renewable for 1% of the licensee’s average annual proceeds for the previous three-year period.
- Operators would retain 53% of proceeds with the rest going to the state for license vetting, regulatory processes, responsible gambling, and then to fund education.
Both bills are currently on the docket for a February 28 committee hearing.
Wyoming – HB.120
This is a new one for 2024. It is not only a new bill but a new state in the mix of possibilities for state-regulated online poker and gambling. It may be the least populated state in America and one with only a handful of casinos on Native American lands, but it is now in the running for legalizing igaming this year.
House Bill 120 made its debut on February 7, courtesy of Representative Robert Davis. Along with co-sponsoring Representatives Jon Conrad, Sandy Newsome, and Tom Walters, the bill seeks to authorize interactive gaming. The Wyoming Gaming Commission would oversee the regulatory duties. Interested operators would need to pay a $100K initial permit fee, which will give them a license for five years, after which they can pay $50K to renew for each subsequent five-year period.
The kicker to this bill is that there must be five interactive gaming operator permits issued to create a competitive marketplace. If it happens, operators will only pay a 10% gaming revenue tax each month, but they must pay the first $300K of each year’s revenue to the Department of Health for gambling prevention and assistance.
Hawaii – SB.3376 & HB.2259
Every once in a great while, a lawmaker in Hawaii proposes some form of gambling. Some have proposed casinos, others igaming, and most recently, sports betting. Ironically, Hawaii is the only state besides Utah that has stood so firmly against any form of gambling that they don’t even offer lottery ticket sales.
In 2016, Hawaii lawmakers introduced numerous bills to legalize igaming, including lottery ticket sales online, online poker and casino games, a standalone lottery, and daily fantasy sports contests. Some of those bills also wanted to make things like DFS specifically illegal. A few more bills over the years focused on gambling, but none of them made any progress through the legislature.
This year, State Representative John Mizuno took on the issue and introduced HB.2259 on January 22, and Senator Ronald Kouchi introduced SB.3376 as a companion bill just two days later. Both bills seek to legalize online poker and sports betting only. In order to do this, Hawaii would have to establish a gaming commission and then issue ten-year licenses to approved operators. An astounding 70% of profits would go to victims of the 2023 wildfire devastation in Maui, and that percentage would decrease by 5% each subsequent year.
The traditionally anti-gambling stance of most Hawaiian lawmakers, not to mention the general population, is likely to quickly derail these bills, as has happened in the past. The only appealing piece of these bills to the opposition would be the wildfire relief, as Maui has been devastated to the tune of billions of dollars.
Illinois – SB.1656 & HB 2239
Last year, Illinois took another look at internet gaming with a set of bills – one in the House and one in the Senate – titled the “Internet Gaming Act.” Both bills worked their way through committees and first readings, but that was the end of the story for 2023.
The bills remained alive in Illinois, however, due to the framework of the state’s legislative sessions.
That was enough for State Senator Cristina Castro to reassign her SB.1656 on January 10, 2024. It went directly to the Executive Committee. And Illinois Representative Edgar Gonzalez Jr. reintroduced his HB.2239 to the Rules Committee on January 31.
The Senate bill went to the Subcommittee on Gaming, Wagering, and Racing on February 8. Neither committee with live igaming bills have any hearings scheduled, but hope remains alive for both bills. Longtime online gambling supporter Robert Rita is the Vice-Chairperson for the House Gaming Committee, and Castro herself is the Sub-Vice-Chair of the Gaming, Wagering, and Racing Committee.
The Internet Gaming Act would expand gambling in the state to offer online poker and online casino games in partnership with land-based casinos. The Illinois Gaming Board would oversee the regulatory framework, including implementing emergency rules to enable the process to move more quickly. Operators would be responsible for a 15% privilege tax for the Illinois Gaming Fund, after paying initial license fees of $250K. They would be allowed to renew their licenses for $100K each.
Maine – HB.1140 / LD.1777
Lawmakers in Maine also carried a bill over from 2023 to 2024. Representative Laura Supica was responsible for LD.1777 (also known as HB.1140) in 2023 as its sponsor, with cosponsors listed as State Senators Craig Hickman, Representatives Ambureen Rana and Amy Roeder, House Speaker Rachel Talbot Ross, and Senate President Troy Jackson. It was a top-tier lineup of support for a bill that would allow Wabanaki Nations to launch internet gaming. That bill made it to a Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee hearing, only to be tabled and then carried over to the next year.
Next year is now, and the bill went into a committee hearing on January 3. That appeared to be a positive sign…until a bomb threat ended the hearing. That pushed the bill to a January 29 hearing, which the members did discuss the bill and a proposed amendment. They then tabled the bill pending the introduction of a draft of the amended proposal. Interested parties continue to wait on that before setting a new hearing.
Iowa – HSB.227
There is not exactly a legislative proposal but a study bill – HSB.227 – in the Iowa House of Representative. Representative Bobby Kaufmann introduced the bill in January 2023, and it went directly to the Ways and Means Committee. After several subcommittee meetings, though, the bill lost ground with a one-to-zero vote to send it back without recommendation.
HSB.227 may only result in further discussions about online gambling, what is referred to in the bill as “advance deposit gambling” to be handled “from the wagering area of a racetrack enclosure, from the gaming floor, and from the sports wagering area.” There is a lot missing from the bill, but it can remain open for further discussion through January 12, 2025.
