Californian iPoker Prospect Bleak for 2017

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Friday, December 30th, 2016 | Written by Shane Larson

The end of the year has traditionally become a time when the poker community starts placing bets on which US states are likely to pass online poker legislation in the coming year. Based upon the current state of developments, however, the odds do not seem to be in California’s favor for 2017.

Amaya Involvement Muddies Waters

Robert Martin, the chairman of the Morongo Band of Mission Indians, has gone on record as saying that his group of iGambling advocates will once again submit legislation that seeks to make online poker legal. Its form will most likely be virtually identical to the one agreed this year with Amaya, the company that owns PokerStars, which has coordinated its actions with the “Morongo Coalition” consisting of a handful of tribes, and therein lies the problem.

In 2016, the major sticking point that killed the online poker bill was Amaya’s involvement in the process. Representatives of other Native American tribes that own casinos in California, who are referred to as the Pechanga group, protested the company’s agreement with the Morongo tribe, and wanted a bad actor clause added to the legislation that would prohibit Amaya from participating in any future online poker industry. According to the anti-Amaya camp, PokerStars had broken the law by providing illegal online poker in the United States after Black Friday.

Amaya countered that the company did not own PokerStars at the time, and that no one involved with the site during the period of violation remains employed at the company today. However, the opposition was not moved by the counterargument. It now seems that Amaya’s assertion that it is not a bad actor is on shakier legs than it was earlier in the year as the previous Chairman of Amaya, David Baazov, has now been indicted on numerous charges related to how the company was acquired. Even though Baazov has since stepped down from his previous CEO position, it still puts another blemish on the reputation of the company, and will give those opposing the Morongo/Amaya alliance more ammunition to shoot down any proposal.

Legislation Efforts Grind to a Halt

Another roadblock to online poker regulation in California is that its largest champion in Sacramento seems to have abandoned all efforts to push for legislation. Earlier in the year, in order to reach some kind of compromise, Assemblyman Adam Gray added language to the previous piece of legislation that would have delayed PokerStars’ entry into any future iPoker market by 5 years. Nevertheless, this outraged the Morongo Band of Mission Indians and Amaya, and since his bill died, Gray seems to have lost any passion for the cause, and it’s unclear if there is anyone else in Sacramento that is willing to take up the gauntlet that he threw down.

Prospect for 2017

Looking ahead to 2017, while the pro-Morongo/Amaya coalition will continue lobbying to have online poker legalized in the Golden State, the anti-Penchanga group will be there to oppose them at every turn. In the meantime, it has become increasingly unlikely that any of the state’s other tribes also eyeing online poker legislation will enter the fray as ultimately a lack of overall tribal consensus can only lead to more frustration and futility going forward.

Case in point, Steve Stallings, chairman of the California Nations Indian Gaming Association (CNIGA) that represent some 33 tribes has gone on the record as stating that online poker legislation stand little chance of success in 2017. Laying out his prediction for the coming year, Stallings explained:

“We’re not really going to try and carry any water on the issue unless the other tribal coalitions – the Morongo group and the Pechanga group – move something forward in some kind of compromise. If tribes want the status quo, from our position we’re prepared to do that.”

Taking up the point, Richard Schuetz, a former California gambling regulator, explained that the only people who will be trying to advance online poker legislation in 2017 are likely to be just lobbyists looking to make a living.

It seems that California has other more pressing issues that are likely to take priority over online poker legislation, too. Tribal councils, for instance, may end up more focused on preserving their rights under President Donald Trump’s new administration, which some feel will not be as Pro-Native American as the Obama presidency. Furthermore, with the threat of the Restoration of the Wire Act (RAWA) once again being argued in Washington, D.C., California is likely to decide to wait and see what happens at the federal level before expending too much effort pushing its own state solution on the issue.