New Bill That Would Legalize Online Poker in New York

There’s been a little gambling expansion in the state of New York recently with casino licenses at present being issued and the newly allowed slots in New York’s international airports, however online gambling is still up for debate. Neighbouring New Jersey offers online gambling to residents of the state, and with the introduction of a new bill in New York, it’s possible that online poker may be allowed in the Empire State soon.

Bill A09509 sees to legalize and regulate online poker in the state of New York and has been introduced by Assemblyman J. Gary Pretlow and is very similar to a previous bill that was put forward by State Senator John Bonanic that allows for real money interactive online poker. The bill is looking to, “authorize the New York State Gaming Commission to license certain entities to offer for play to the public certain variants of internet poker which require a significant degree of skill, specifically ‘Omaha Hold’em’ and ‘Texas Hold’em.” The bill has a long way to go and many of the answers to questions regarding the New York bill can be found in New Jersey where online poker and casino games were legalized last November. While some degree of success has been seen with online gambling in the Garden State, it has not provided anywhere near the tax returns that were hoped for, as is the case of the other two states where regulated online gaming is permitted...Nevada and Delaware. At the moment it’s thought that a number of poker players from New York are crossing the border regularly to play in New Jersey as residential status is not required, however a whole lot more poker players and online slots fans are still using many of the well established offshore sites such as Bovada who provide online poker, casino and sports wagering.