Exclusive: No amendments to Wright's Cali bill
Unchanged bill likely to face same opposition as SB 1463, dramatically pulled from Senate committee last June due to lack of support.
California Senator Roderick Wright will introduce an unchanged online poker bill in January despite failing to attract sufficient support during the last legislative session, eGR North America has learned.
The politician had already confirmed plans to continue his fight to bring legal online gambling to the state, however after SB 1463 was dramatically pulled from the Senate Governmental Organisation Committee in June, Wright was expected to ring the changes to boost its chances of passing in 2013.
The bill faced significant opposition from Native American groups, including the powerful Pechanga and Morongo tribes, the latter as part of the California Online Poker Association (COPA), the now-defunct coalition of 29 tribes and 31 card rooms.
Criticism from such groups focused on Wright’s inclusion of advance deposit wagering (ADW) firms, namely Churchill Downs and Betfair TVG, as eligible online poker licensees. California’s tribes argue that these companies have no involvement in poker currently and therefore should not be part of any online poker industry.
Many close to the legislation believe Wright was willing to remove this provision, however a source told eGR NA the senator will “continue where he left off” in June and that Wright is determined to retain the provision “as a bargaining chip” with tribes.
Other sticking points in the bill include the obligation of tribes to waive their sovereignty in order to undergo the thorough suitability checks during the licensing process.
Wright will hope the dissolution of COPA will make his job of achieving consensus easier. Its members presented a 73-page proposed set of amendments to the bill in August, indicating it would back the legislation should Wright agree to its terms. The proposals included requests to deny racing associations the right to be eligible licence applicants and to extend the initial licence term from five to 10 years.