When the Department of Justice’s Office of Legal Counsel revealed its new opinion regarding the Wire Act in January, it was more than a little unpopular. It raised eyebrows due to the likely influence of casino mogul and political influencer Sheldon Adelson on the decision, and it infuriated states that
Last week, two members of the Michigan state legislature introduced bills to legalize internet gaming. It was not a huge surprise to see the proposals emerge, as nearly identical legislation passed through both houses in late 2018. The only reason it is not part of Michigan law today is that
In a move that was surprising to many and impressive to all, West Virginia passed a bill to legalize online poker and casino games through both houses of its legislature. As the 2019 legislative session came to a close, the West Virginia Lottery Interactive Wagering Act moved through both houses.
Last year was a bittersweet one for online poker fans in Michigan and those watching from across America. Lawmakers went to great efforts to find consensus on internet gaming bills, and support grew as the year progressed. Hope lived that Michigan would become the fifth state to legalize online poker
The road to online poker in Pennsylvania has been paved with good intentions but many, many delays. From there start, delays were the name of the game. It took several years for Pennsylvania lawmakers to pass a law to legalize and regulate online poker and casino games, which they finally
One of the states deemed likely to seriously examine online poker and other forms of online gambling in 2019 was Connecticut. The primary reason for the optimism came from the unequivocal support of the state’s two tribes in 2018. The Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation and Mohegan Tribe each told lawmakers
United States Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein may be on his way to retirement later this month, but that didn’t stop him from slapping a second delay on the implementation date for the new Wire Act opinion recently issued by the Department of Justice. No date has been set for
The US Department of Justice knew that when it issued its opinion recently to reverse the 2011 Wire Act interpretation, there was going to be some backlash. The leeway originally given by the DOJ’s Office of Legal Counsel in 2011 prompted several states to take action and implement laws for
Some states have very clear stances on gambling. In Nevada, almost anything goes. In Utah, no form of gambling is legal, not even the lottery. The state of Washington, however, is complex. Each of the state’s 29 Native American tribes have some form of gaming compact with the state government.
Only one state has joined the ranks of states with legal online poker in the past five years, and that was Pennsylvania in 2017. Other state lawmakers have proposed bills, some have pushed them through committees, and even one (hello, Michigan) passed an online poker bill all the way through
It started just before Christmas in 2018. World Series of Poker executives started releasing information about the 2019 WSOP, beginning with some of the highlighted events and added more on a nearly-weekly basis through the first weeks of this year. On the last day of January 2019, the final schedule
The Commonwealth of Kentucky took action this week on its sports betting legislation, which also bodes well for online poker and fantasy sports, both of which are included in the bill. As the bill has been alive for little more than two weeks, it has already garnered substantial bipartisan support
