New York Online Poker Bill Gathers Momentum in Assembly

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Monday, April 23rd, 2018 | Written by Stephen Smith

New York’s online poker bill has gathered pace in recent weeks, with an increasing number of Assembly members showing their support for the Gary Pretlow sponsored piece of legislation. Helping the bill make more progress than has been seen in several years, and providing the state’s poker players with an unexpected optimism boost, is Assemblyman Clyde Vanel (photo) who has succeeded in drumming up extra support for bill A.5250.

In the meantime, there seems to be little signs of extra encouragement from Pretlow, though, who when asked about his feelings about legislation being passed in 2018, stated that he had about the same level of confidence than at the start of the year. Nevertheless, Pretlow said that he was glad to have Vanel’s support, and that hopefully A.5250 will follow in the footsteps of its companion bill (S.3898) which for the past two years has sailed through the Senate.

Mounting Support

A.5250 is experiencing a major jump in co-sponsors, with support for the Assembly bill going from 13 to 44 in just a matter of days. Even so, Assemblyman Gary Pretlow does not share his colleague’s optimism that this push will necessarily result in the Assembly advancing its poker bill. Instead, Pretlow, who also chair of the Racing, Gaming, and Wagering Committee for the Assembly, believes that support for the bill isn’t growing fast enough, and as he recently stated:

“We will get to 60, but my goal is 76. At 76, that means there’s a majority of Democrats in favor.”

Assembly Leadership Key

As the legislative session ends in June, the key to getting the online poker bill through the Assembly is the same as it was during the last session: convincing Speaker Carl Heastie that it is important. Pretlow admits this will be tough sell. Nevertheless, Heastie is not the only member of the Assembly not in favor of online gambling, and as much as Pretlow tries to explain that it is nothing more than an extension of New York’s current gambling industry, some people remain unconvinced and closed to the idea.

Given that New York has 150 lawmakers in its Assembly, having 76 co-sponsors on the bill would put internal pressure on Heastie to pass the bill, though, while further external pressure from his constituents, which includes areas of the Bronx, would surely be helpful.

“There’s still a whole lot of time available to do some of the things we need to do, when there’s the will to do them. Getting leadership to see the need for these things is what my problem always has been,”explains Pretlow.

iPoker Tagged onto Sports Betting?

More recently, Pretlow has divided his attention between sports betting and online poker, with the latter attracting an increasing amount of his time and efforts. That’s because there’s a greater sense of urgency for a sports betting bill to be passed this year, as the US Supreme Court is expected to rule on the federal sports betting ban by the end of June.

There is even documented support for sports betting in New York state, as voters approved a constitutional amendment authorizing sports betting at state casinos back in 2013. This has subsequently led Pretlow to now consider adding online poker to the state’s sports betting bill as there is a better chance that sports betting will pass, and maybe online poker with it. That said, as Pretlow explains:

“Combining the bills is a last resort. I don’t want to combine them, but if I have to then I will.”

New Support For the Bill

Assemblyman Vandel, who came into office around a year ago and is currently the chair of the recently-formed Subcommittee on Internet and New Technology, has helped Pretlow muster support from Democrats after including internet poker in the Assembly’s budget proposals. While his efforts ultimately failed to have online poker included in the state budget, they have nonetheless been instrumental in gathering extra co-sponsor support for the bill.

Going forwards, Venel has promised to continue generating additional support for the bill during the present legislative session. Meanwhile, Pretlow has welcomed the significant impact Venal has been having on the whole process, and recently expressed appreciation for his tireless efforts. Pretlow further stated that he wants Venal on his committee, and that he is one of the few people who really understands what he is trying to do.