For the third consecutive year, Virginia state Senator Louise Lucas has introduced a bill to legalize some form of gambling. This year it’s S 1400, a measure that would legalize poker as a game of skill, as well as regulate live poker tournaments and refine the definitions of “illegal gambling” and “charitable gambling” in the state. Lucas submitted S 1400 to the 15-member General Laws and Technology Committee, which killed her previous bills by 10-4 in 2015 and 7-5 in 2016, on January 11.
Currently Virginia allows a state lottery, parimutuel betting, charitable betting and daily fantasy sports. Last year DFS betting was legalized in February 2016 after it was declared a game of skill, not chance. Lucas said she hopes that will lead to the legislature allowing Virginians to play real money poker.
Lucas’ bill states, “Poker games shall be deemed games of skill, and nothing in this subdivision shall be construed to make any such game illegal gambling.”
Her bill also would create an article in the state code regarding “Regulation of Poker Tournaments,” stating, “Poker tournaments as defined in this article and authorized herein shall be permitted in the Commonwealth, but shall be conducted only in strict compliance with the provisions of this article.” Some of those provisions include that land-based bingo operators would be allowed to offer live poker games and tournaments; players must be age 18 or older; no poker-game prize can exceed $100; and tournaments could be held only once a week.
Poker tournaments would be regulated by the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and the Charitable Gaming Board. Lucas has submitted 10 different bills over the past four years to create a state entity to regulate Virginia casinos, but none ever passed out of committee.
Currently the only legal gambling allowed in Virginia is the state lottery. The Colonial Downs racetrack closed last year, after the Virginia Racing Commission denied the track 2016 racing dates.
In the past, Virginia law enforcement has been criticized for its heavy-handed approach to home poker games. Fairfax County police called in a SWAT team armed with automatic rifles to break up a poker game in a private home in January 2015. Police confiscated $150,000 from the game’s host and eight of the 10 players were charged with misdemeanor illegal gambling, punishable by a maximum fine of $500. In 2006 the same police department sent a SWAT team to arrest optometrist Salvatore J. Culosi Jr. for illegally betting on football games. An officer accidentally shot and killed Culosi on the doorstep of his home.
