Home / Poker News March 2012 / Utah Opts Out of Online Poker for Good
Utah Opts Out of Online Poker for Good
Posted by: Jo Martin - Mon, 2012-03-26 07:55
Last week, Utah became the first state to opt out of online gambling and online poker in all shapes and forms, when Gov. Gary Herbert signed into a law a bill known as HB108. The legal move is the first of its kind in the US, as it exercises the state’s right to opt out of any kind of Federal legislation aimed at the legalization and regulation of
online poker and online gambling in the future. The bill includes language about the passing of a potential Federal law regarding online gaming and about the fact that in such a case, Utah will opt out of the law if the said law will allow for individual states’ opting out of it.
Utah is not the only state with such an adverse attitude towards online gambling and poker. There are other states which have similar laws planned, but many of them are still waiting to see whether or not the legalization and regulation of online gambling and poker will financially benefit neighboring states, before deciding how to move ahead with the issue.
Utah however has never considered/allowed gambling in any shape or form, being one of only 2 US states with such a radical stance on gambling. In Utah, gambling is basically a sin.
PPA executive director John Pappas said his organization tried to fight the bill, and it in no way considered the outcome a positive one, but given the state’s history on the issue, it came as no surprise to him.
The legal response on the part of Utah lawmakers was prompted by the DoJ’s December decision to adopt an entirely new stance on the 1961 Wire Act. The bill was introduced in January.
According to Pappas, the Utah bill is a dangerous one for it may become a trend among states to go down that same legal road. Most of the states responded to the DoJ decision positively, by stating that they would consider legalizing and regulating online gambling and poker as a source of revenue.
