Poker Legalization Proposal in Texas Leaves Out Internet Users

In December 2012, the Democratic Party Senator Eddie Rodriguez presented to the Texas law makers the new bill called “Texas Poker Gaming Act of 2013” aimed at regulating the poker activities to be offered by the state-licensed land-based casinos facilities, the website Pokerfuse reports. Unfortunately for the internet poker players, the new measure explicitly bans other forms and channels for the game, including online and mobile poker and even electronic poker tables, focusing only on the traditional variance of the popular game. At the moment, there is only one legal live poker room in Texas - the tribally owned 12-table Lucky Eagle enterprise in the vicinity of Mexico border. "The bill would also allow licenses for offering poker to be applied for by existing pari-mutuel facilities, bingo halls and tribal concerns," Pokerfuse reports. "Participating tribes and pari-mutuels could offer poker around the clock, while bingo halls would be limited to providing poker only during the halls' normal hours of operation." In his proposal, Rodriguez advocates for establishing a new poker department within the Texas Lottery Commission, even though the poker has been defined as a game of skill and not a lottery. The designers of the bill included also the bad beat and promotional jackpots provisions, as well as the suggested tax regime for up to 18% of operators' gross revenues, with tax allocation to the state's Department of Housing and Community Affairs. The bill also proposes cash-game activity without limits on buy-ins and with a 10% rake maxed at $4. Additionally, the new measure allows live tournaments with top buy-in of $100, making it difficult for the operators with major prize pools to plan their activities. Last year's federal bill launched last year by Texan Joe Barton addressed different authorities compared to the state-based measure proposed by Rodriguez. Namely, Barton's bill HR 2366 - the Online Poker Act of 2011 was presented to the House of Representatives in Congress in June 2012 but, despite the support of 27 co-sponsors, has not yet been endorsed by the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security.