Following a high-flying retail sports betting debut, the Empire State is now eying the legalization of online poker within its state lines. The new bill recently tabled in New York’s assembly argues that poker is a game of skill, not of chance.
As New York continues to bask in the glory of having a record-breaking first year after sports betting kicked off in January 2022, legislators are looking for ways to expand the gambling market. During the January 17 legislative session, NY State Rep. Gary Pretlow introduced Bill A01380, a measure that:
Quote“Allows certain interactive poker games to be considered games of skill rather than games of luck; includes definitions, authorization, required safeguards and minimum standards, the scope of licensing review and state tax implications; makes corresponding penal law amendments.”
The bill seeks to amend NY’s racing, pari-mutuel wagering, and breeding law to classify some forms of online poker as games of skill rather than chance. After its first reading, the Bill was referred to the Committee on Racing and Wagering to be deliberated upon.
If At First You Don’t Succeed…
The latest online poker Bill A01380 is not the first of its kind, as similar bills have been tabled to the assembly over the years. But, interestingly, it is Rep. Pretlow who has been at the forefront of advocating for the online poker industry, which he has repeatedly praised.
In fact, it seems that the assemblyman has been attempting to have a regulated online poker sector for every legislative session since 2014. The only exception was in 2018, after PASPA was repealed and states were free to pass sports betting laws. It was at that time that his focus temporarily shifted to sports gambling.
He immediately got back on the Internet Poker horse in 2019 by presenting another online poker bill in 2019. Now that that is out of the way, and the state has broken several national records in its first year of legalizing sports betting, Rep. Pretlow has yet again reintroduced the online poker case to the agenda.
All his previous propositions have hit the wall after failing to get enough support from House members despite a promising payday when adopted. The main reason behind the failures is that, in the past, the state was opposed to several aspects of gambling. The first statesman to introduce such a bill was NY State Senator John Bonacic back in 2014 with S6913.
Online Poker May Be Included in NY Before Mobile Casino Betting
The legalization of sports betting in the Empire State in 2022 is one of the main reasons why this year’s attempt to add online poker to the list of allowed gambling activities is a possibility. Proponents of the bill have expressed optimism that the bill will garner more support than in previous years. Pretlow also happens to chair the Standing Committee on Racing and Wagering, which will be discussing the bill to determine if it should proceed to the next stage.
One such supporter is state Sen. Joseph P. Addabbo, who has ambitions of his own regarding legalizing online casino betting. He has revealed that really soon, he would be sponsoring a bill on the subject. Sen. Addabbo’s online gambling bill would include the proposal to join the Multistate Internet Gaming Agreement to partly cover the regulatory framework. Like Rep. Pretlow, it won’t be the senator’s first time to table an online casino bill.
Preylow’s bill presents online poker as a different entity from mobile casinos, although some previous proposals have lumped them into one. The bill is focused on convincing lawmakers to consider internet poker as a game of skill rather than chance, something that cannot be said about mobile casino games. In the bill, gambling is defined as:
Quote“staking or risking something of value upon his or her control or influence, upon an agreement or understanding that he or she will receive something of value in the event of a certain outcome.”
The bill goes into detail by citing some poker versions, including Texas Hold’em and Omaha Hold’em poker, which it argues, should not be categorized under gambling. According to the bill’s argument, they are complex and require players to have some skills to compete for prizes.
The Empire’s Gaming Potential Has Only Had its Surface Scratched
The New York gambling industry has been steadily expanding to include more activities to its revenue portfolio. Most recently, the New York State Gaming Commission opened applications for licenses that would permit operators to run three Downstate New York retail casinos whose licenses are worth $1.5 billion combined. The deadline for applications is February 3.
Also, the first year of legal sports betting saw bookmakers bring in over $600 million in tax revenue for the state. The online Poker bill proposes a 15% tax on operators, which may be a far cry from the 51% imposed on sportsbooks and the estimated $1.2 billion for mobile casinos if passed. Nonetheless, the revenue will still boost the overall windfall collected in the state.
Even so, there is still some fear surrounding online betting in general, but with mobile casinos being legal in over half of US states, it may be time to reconsider old stances. Most pro-internet gambling supporters, including Pretlow, have pointed out that a regulated market in any gambling field stands to benefit the state more. That’s because the gambling black market will continue to operate, and players will flock to it to bet money that, once gone, cannot benefit the communities.
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