Last month another California legislative session passed into history—a session where once again no iPoker bill was passed, despite the professed best intentions of almost all parties concerned.
This year, as in last year, the main sticking point was the insistence by one consortium that “bad actor” language be included in the bill to make it next to impossible for Amaya / PokerStars and its gaming tribe/card club partners to participate.
But many who support such a bill see the basic problem as being that nothing can pass in the legislature if a sufficiently strong Indian gaming tribe opposes it. Two-thirds of both chambers of the legislature would be required to pass it.
Another factor is that there are not many lawmakers interested in passing such a bill. One lobbyist counted 25 votes in the Assembly for Adam Gray’s bill out of 54 votes needed.
Another lobbyist who frequently represents tribal interests commented, “The way the bill was handled was not good. It left legislators feeling uncomfortable.”
What particularly rankled some politicos was that Gray himself, the author of the bill, flipped from first opposing a “bad actor” requirement to supporting it, after his father-in-law announced that he would be representing the tribe that insisted upon it.
Around ten tribes seek to prevent PokerStars from participating without paying a possibly impossible price because it was accused of violating the Unlawful Internet Gaming Enforcement Act of 2006—and built up a formidable customer list as a result.
Thirty-four tribes are not too concerned about that. The horseracing industry and the majority of card rooms are also in this group. Under the most recent proposal online poker would be taxed. Card rooms as well as tribes could apply for licenses. The racing industry would not participate, but would be paid for not insisting on a place at the table.
The gaming tribes, far from being monolithic, have a rainbow of interests that only sometimes intersect. There are 60 gaming tribes in the Golden State, with often unique languages, customs and traditions.
Unlike tribal gaming, online gaming would be regulated by the state. The gaming tribes have a vested interest in it, but they don’t have an inherent legal right to dominate it, as they do tribal gaming. That exclusive right was granted to them by Proposition 1A, where the people of California amended the state constitution to carve out an exclusive place for tribal gaming. Nowhere did that initiative mention online gaming.
Only a few of the largest tribes stand to gain from iPoker. They include Morongo and San Manuel, who have partnered with Amaya/PokerStars; the Rincon Band of Luiseño Indians, whose casino, Harrah’s Southern California, is managed by Caesars Entertainment—which operates the World Series of Poker—and the Pala Band of Mission Indians, which owns Pala Interactive.
Other tribes have less of an interest. But they all have influence with the legislature.
The Pechanga Band of Indians was particularly insistent that the racetracks not be allowed to operate iPoker sites. Only when the racetracks were offered a buyout did they back off from their insistence that they be part of the deal.
So, despite progress that was made this year, there is no guarantee that the issue will begin at the same starting point next January. The compromises that were agreed to this year may not be next year.
Although finding away around the “bad actor” impasse is an obvious necessity, there are other spiky nettles to grasp as well.
Pechanga’s doughty resistance to PokerStars appears to be non-negotiable. It insists that PokerStars be forced to “sit in a penalty box” for at least five years while the industry takes off.
Sacramento observers say that there are only three things that could fundamentally change this dynamic: 1) Pechanga loses a significant number of its supporters, 2) PokerStars gives up and 3) Pechanga is persuaded to relent.
Without one of those scenarios happening, next year’s iPoker debate may be very similar to this year’s.
In a separate but related development, one designed to keep up the spirits of poker supporters in the Golden State: the Southern California Poker Championships will be hosted in Los Angeles County at the Gardens Casino, Bicycle Club, Commerce, and Hustler casinos.
A new format will be introduced and a guaranteed $3 million prize pool, with a $500,000 first place prize and a Mercedes Benz.
There will be a $350 buy in for the tournament, which will commence September 18 and continue until November 12.
