The overwhelming feeling amongst industry participants and observers at the recent iGaming Supershow in Amsterdam was that the ‘King Bill’ looked to be dead in the water. The Internet Gambling Regulation, Enforcement, and Consumer Protection Act of 2013 has been introduced by Rep. Peter King (R-NY) in a bid to regulate all forms of online gambling, with the exception of sports betting, which is banned in most states.
If the bill was to pass, it would legalise online gambling in the United States and would acknowledge state regulation laws if states agreed not to opt out. However, it looks as if a federal law is becoming less and less likely, as the time for its approval is running out before states are given the last word to decide how to proceed with the matter.
The bill would regulate all online poker and casino games and, although the exact games to be allowed are not included, it is believed that all casino games under the class III gaming category would be legalised, including craps, roulette, slot machines, video poker and any table game banked by the house involving cards. Poker is specifically mentioned in the bill, Legal Poker Sites website reported.
Certain states have already taken action, such as California, which proposed a bill that would lead to the automatic opt-out of the state of any future regulation regarding online gambling. By contrast, the state of Washington took a different stance and criminalised online poker for both operators and players. Attempt to appeal the act are currently being made but it is likely to take a long time before a court ruling is announced, the website said.
We believe that federal oversight of US online gaming is highly likely in the near future, especially as the growth in social gaming is prompting authorities to take a holistic view on all areas of digital Pay2Play entertainment. Which bill is the precursor to this is still some time away from being determined.