Online Poker Legalization in California Gaining Ground
Legalized online poker in California.
A proposed initiative to create a state-owned Internet poker game drew attention last week from the existing gambling community -- including Indian casino tribes -- and support from independent experts.
"It's silly for the state not to get into the business," said I. Nelson Rose, a professor and attorney at Whittier Law School in Costa Mesa. "Billions of dollars are being spent on the game here, and the state isn't getting one penny."
California is the world's online poker capital, analysts said. The last two World Series of Poker champions come from that state. The government is missing out by not legalizing, regulating and taxing it.
Rose, a nationally known gambling expert who will be speaking at this month's CAC in Montreal, said that "ultimately California is going to legalize Internet poker," but said he is uncertain whether the new proposed initiative is the vehicle.
The proposal would allow Indian casinos and other gambling establishments to set up revenue-sharing deals, which would serve as an incentive to wealthy tribes to gather voter signatures needed to put the measure on the February ballot.
They do it in Sweden, where the government's online poker site made nearly $700 million in profits last year, points out Robert Saladay of the LA Times.
"The California site would collect fees or a "rake" from the gambling site and direct 45% to the California State Teachers Retirement System for retirees with lower-than-average pensions," claims Saladay. "Another 45% would be directed to veterans homes, mental health programs for retired military personnel and, specifically, to purchase artificial limbs and hearing aids for veterans. The final 10% cut would be directed to gambling addiction programs. PDF version of the initiative here."
Initiative supporters must collect about 430,000 signatures by the end of the year to qualify the measure for the ballot.
That' where maverick online poker player, Anthony Sandstrom, comes in. Known as "Tuff Fish" on the YouTube circuit, Sandstrom is working hard to collect these signatures.
As the individual who authored the measure, Sandstrom acknowledges his initiative isn't aimed at solving some big social problem.
It would mostly allow Internet poker gambling at a time when federal law has thrown the activity into a legal gray area, posing a possible court challenge in which the state would have to defend Internet gambling, writes Steve Geissinger of Media News.
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"I am just a guy who wants to play poker at home when I don't feel like making an hour drive to a card room or casino," Sandstrom said on his initiative Web site.
"I am going to make a mighty effort to make safe, legal, and accessible online poker possible."
Sandstrom, who did not respond to attempts to contact him directly, says the proposal also would provide money for repair of potholes on city roads.
"A pox on the initiative," said Fred Glass, a spokesman for the California Federation of Teachers, whose members depend partially on the flow of funds from state-run lottery.
Analysts were cautious over whether Sandstrom could collect the required signatures — about 430,000 — by Christmas. One cited the kickoff day for recalling former Gov. Gray Davis, when most experts said the initiative didn't have a chance.
A poster at the Two Plus Two Poker forums expressed skepticism regarding Sandstrom's ability to collect the necessary signatures.
"It's hard to see how he could get anywhere near 430,000 signatures. He thinks he can get this just on the Internet. I have news for him. I spent a month doing as much as I could to get poker players to sign the Internet petition to repeal UIGEA. I estimated that I was able to get 1,800 signatures more than it would have gotten without our efforts here. I can't imagine how he can get 220x that from one state, when poker player support for him is lukewarm at best. Still, if he manages this without torquing us any more than he already has, and if there isn't a better bill, I'll support it."
People interested in signing or learning more about the petition should visit his website http://www.caonlinepoker.org/ All the details, as well as full text of the initiative, can be found there. If enough signatures are collected, the initiative will end up on the ballot in the spring.
Online Poker Legalization in California Gaining Ground