Online Casino Transfer: News - California Committee Meets

02/19/2010		Online Casino Style: News California Committee Meets - 2
Home History Games News Dictionary		continued from California Committee Meets - 1 Miller reminded the politicians that the establishment of regulatory standards of online gambling will have to be done with the long-term in mind, considering residents and California Tribes as well as the government. Meanwhile, the Indian Tribes adamantly hold that casinos – both land-based and online – should be exclusively controlled by the tribes and the state, refusing to concede that liberalization and diversification could hold any benefit for the proposed system. The Chairman for the Pechanga Band of Luiseno Indians even went so far as to oppose the entire bill, not satisfied with exclusivity, Mark Macarro said that they do not agree with the authorization of online gambling for intrastate poker on any level, under any circumstances. In fact, Macarro alluded to his tribe’s willingness to blackmail the state into negating the law, saying that they are considering withholding more than $42 million in annual casino revenue sharing payments to California if online poker is approved. It’s developing into a harsh battle between gambling entities, with a keen observation being made by State Senator Roderick Wright, as he was quoted, “Clearly, whatever we do will end up in court.'' This particular informational hearing was only the first of ten panels to address the major change in state legislation. And legal challenges do indeed seem to be unavoidable, as analysts are reporting. According to Drew Soderborg, the fiscal and policy analyst with the Legislative Analyst Office, said that the current agreements between the State of California and the Tribes stipulate annual gaming payments in exchange for an advantage in the land-based casino market. Should the State change the game by introducing online gambling, the Tribes would likely be within their legal rights to withhold payments, summing to as much as $365 million this year. Money that is desperately needed. "There could be legal challenges if online poker were approved,'' he said.”If such challenges were upheld, the state could lose hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue annually." But if legalization isn’t achieved, the potential for new revenue in California is limited, creating a no-win Catch-22 that only time will tell.

02/19/2010

Online Casino Style: News
California Committee Meets - 2

continued from California Committee Meets - 1

Miller reminded the politicians that the establishment of regulatory standards of online gambling will have to be done with the long-term in mind, considering residents and California Tribes as well as the government. Meanwhile, the Indian Tribes adamantly hold that casinos – both land-based and online – should be exclusively controlled by the tribes and the state, refusing to concede that liberalization and diversification could hold any benefit for the proposed system. The Chairman for the Pechanga Band of Luiseno Indians even went so far as to oppose the entire bill, not satisfied with exclusivity, Mark Macarro said that they do not agree with the authorization of online gambling for intrastate poker on any level, under any circumstances.

In fact, Macarro alluded to his tribe’s willingness to blackmail the state into negating the law, saying that they are considering withholding more than $42 million in annual casino revenue sharing payments to California if online poker is approved. It’s developing into a harsh battle between gambling entities, with a keen observation being made by State Senator Roderick Wright, as he was quoted, “Clearly, whatever we do will end up in court.''

This particular informational hearing was only the first of ten panels to address the major change in state legislation. And legal challenges do indeed seem to be unavoidable, as analysts are reporting. According to Drew Soderborg, the fiscal and policy analyst with the Legislative Analyst Office, said that the current agreements between the State of California and the Tribes stipulate annual gaming payments in exchange for an advantage in the land-based casino market. Should the State change the game by introducing online gambling, the Tribes would likely be within their legal rights to withhold payments, summing to as much as $365 million this year. Money that is desperately needed.

"There could be legal challenges if online poker were approved,'' he said.”If such challenges were upheld, the state could lose hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue annually." But if legalization isn’t achieved, the potential for new revenue in California is limited, creating a no-win Catch-22 that only time will tell.