The push to legalize the online poker industry in California has been going on for a number of years as a PokerStars led coalition has continued to turn up the pressure on state legislators. A decision on whether the online poker industry could be legalized could be taken before the end of this month as the California Assembly Governmental Organization Committee has called for a hearing.
The committee will look into Assemblyman Adam Gray’s AB 2863 online poker bill on April 27 and share their views as to whether there is any chance of online poker being legalized in California this year.
PokerStars, the biggest online poker website in the world has formed a coalition with a number of key parties in the state such as the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians, Bicycle Casino, Morongo Band of Mission Indians, Hawaiian Gardens Casino and the Commerce Casino to push for the legalization of online poker highlighting the fact that California has one of the biggest online poker markets in the U.S. and the state has a great opportunity to make significant revenue in the form of online gaming taxes.
PokerStars recently sent in a letter supporting bill AB 2863 which said, “On behalf of a broad coalition of tribal governments, card clubs and online operators, we write in support of your AB 2863, your bill to protect consumers, create jobs, and strengthen our state’s economy by authorizing and regulating intrastate, Internet Poker in California. Authorizing online poker will be good for millions of consumers and poker players who will benefit from a safe, regulated, commercial gaming environment where they are protected and assured that the games are fair and honest.”
While the coalition does support AB 2863 there are still a few concerns over some of the proposed amendments, especially the clause which restricts the use of customer databases. The coalition believes that this particular clause will limit the potential of online poker operators by reducing the potential of the online poker market in the state, thereby limiting the overall revenue that California could potentially receive.
PokerStars also highlighted the fact that California has been debating the possibility of legalizing online poker for a number of years but has delayed its decision making process. The letter pointed out the fact that the state continues to lose a significant amount of revenue due to the fact that legislators were not able to make a final decision.
Amaya Inc, the parent company of PokerStars, has received a lot of negative publicity during the last couple of months after Canadian authorities filed 5 insider trading charges against the company’s former CEO David Baazov, who decided to step down till the case was settled. This negative publicity will not help PokerStars’ push for legalizing online poker in California.
