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Senator Gary Pretlow has reintroduced Senate Bill 2614, aiming to legalize online poker as part of a broader online casino package. Boosting needed funding The United States’ leading gambling industry advocacy and lobbying group has come out in opposition to federal legislation that would earmark a portion of sports betting taxes for problem gambling services. Though state Sen. Joseph P. Addabbo, Jr. introduced a bill to legalize online casino, poker, and lottery games last week, none of those were included in Governor Kathy Hochul’s… Read more » Not dead, not really alive It looks like it could be another year without online casino and online poker in New York. For years both states have dallied with the notion of passing online poker legislation, only to turn away from the industry that potentially could net them billions in tax revenues.
The National Association Against iGaming (NAAiG) has also lobbied against legalization. The Senate version differs just a bit from the House bill, which would tax the industry at just 15%, but with 6% still going to the Hold Harmless Fund. Sen. www.pokernewsdaily.com Mamie Locke (D), who sponsored the bill, said the proposal would “dramatically curtail Virginia’s thriving illegal iGaming market.” The legislation estimates bringing in $3343 million in tax revenue by Fiscal Year 2028, rising to more than $1 billion by 2032. SB118 would legalize iGaming and has drawn significant opposition in the Old Dominion State.
That applies to both online poker and live poker, meaning if you want to play cards legally and live in Georgia, you’ll have to travel to Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana, or Mississippi to get some action. Not only that but even though the state is small, there are plenty of nearby card rooms in neighboring states, which makes Delaware a great place to live for poker players. As of 2026, only six states have legalized and regulated online poker in Nevada, Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Michigan.
And, due to the stringent gambling laws, there are also no land-based card rooms across the state, although you might find some underground games that aren’t regulated. Gambling in general is not a priority of the hardcore Christian conservative movement, which is active in Georgia, As such, poker is not legal in any form in Georgia, and is considered a misdemeanor to engage in unregulated gambling. Poker is legal in Florida when it comes to land-based casinos, but it isn’t legal online and you shouldn’t expect that to change any time soon. Sadly, there are no nearby states for Coloradans to travel to for legal online poker. Since 2012, lawmakers have at least considered a pro-online poker bill but one has never seriously advanced or come close to passing. In more than a decade since there hasn’t been any serious movement toward bringing legal online poker to the state.
Below you will get a better understanding of online poker in the United States and garner a better understanding of each state’s current stance on the issue, and in some cases, their chances of offering online poker. Currently, WSOP.com, PokerStars, and BetMGM all operate shared player pools. “The only way to shut it down is to have a regulated legal marketplace.” Sen. Cristina Castro, who introduced online casino bills in prior legislative sessions, believes this can fix budget shortfalls in a way that residents will approve of.
Considering this was a nascent industry it is not surprising the legal landscape was not developed and very unclear. That’s a point that I’ve made in the past, and that was borne out when Rhode Island became the only state since 2021 to pass an online casino bill. This year saw the formation of the National Association Against iGaming, aligning the retail industry holdouts with casino workers’ unions and a variety of advocacy groups. While conventional operators like MGM have unequivocally opposed prediction contracts on sports, DraftKings and FanDuel have begun dabbling in predictions as a way of keeping up. DraftKings and FanDuel, which were themselves the disruptors not long ago, had only just begun to make peace with the U.S. brick-and-mortar casino industry. The prediction markets have had a profound effect on the gambling industry, too.
The bill would allow the state’s five casinos to offer online gaming. Lawmakers noted the state’s lost revenue to online gaming at unregulated sites and the state senate passed a bill in 2024 to study the issue. The state already allows for online sports betting, which was legalized in 2020. In some states, that could possibly include online casino gaming and poker. Several other states are considering online poker legislation this year, including Massachusetts, Indiana, Maryland and New York. Connecticut lawmakers held a public hearing on Wednesday to consider a bill that would give the governor the authority to join other states in an online poker compact.
It makes no difference that this gambling isn’t exactly the same as that gambling. There have been numerous stories lately that cast gambling in a negative light. True, that’s a federal battle, while gambling is a state issue, prediction markets notwithstanding. Topping the list of things that will be at the front of everyone’s minds next year is the NBA gambling scandal. To many decision-makers, gambling is gambling … and 2025 has been a doozie. This past year has been a contentious one for gambling in general.
The Delaware Lottery dictated laws, and online casino games launched in October 2013, with internet poker close behind in early November 2013. The state legislature leaped into action soon after and legalized online poker and casino games in June 2013. Since the 2011 DOJ decision clarifying the 1961 Wire Act, states have had the authority to legalize and regulate online poker and casino games as desired.
Since gambling is technically illegal except on Native American reservations, there are no traditional brick-and-mortar casinos in the Lone Star State. However, live poker is available via a legal gray area that allows poker rooms to operate within the law. South Dakota does allow casinos and poker on tribal lands and the city of Deadwood is a historically important poker site as it is where James Butler “Wild Bill” Hickok played the “dead man’s hand” before being killed in 1876. There is no online poker in South Dakota and it isn’t something lawmakers have considered in recent years. The first legal poker site in the state, PokerStars PA, went live in 2019 and other sites followed suit in 2021, including WSOP PA and BetMGM Poker PA.
Note – there’s a need for poker pool-sharing due to State’s small population of only 3.5m residents. Liberalization in B&M, with a new jointly owned Mohegan/Foxwoods Casino opening soon, means there is need for incremental revenue – which online brings. The idea was that preventing interstate play kept the federal bills at bay, even though the DOJ had previously given the all clear re. In addition, restrictions to control underage gambling and the use of geo-location technology to identify if a customer crosses state lines.
Fortunately, Pennsylvania lawmakers eventually came to an agreement in November 2017, and has now become one of the top states for online poker. Four years went by without any state passing an online poker bill after Delaware did so in October 2013. Delaware brings in the lowest revenue from poker among all states with legal poker sites in operation. The Mid-Atlantic state officially signed a pro-online poker bill into legislation October 31, 2013, eight months after Nevada and New Jersey. Delaware is a bit of an afterthought when it comes to online gambling.
Interstate Online Poker
“Three of our neighbors are already part of this agreement – and with this action today, we’re making sure Pennsylvania remains competitive in a rapidly growing online market. Bally’s also won a license and operates Bally Bet casino in neighboring states New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island. Hard Rock, one of the retail casino licensees, figures to be very interested in iGaming.
Is poker legal in South Carolina?
That was a frustrating time for the poker community, because it was starting to seem like it could be many years before any other states stepped up to the plate. Poker liquidity is the reason poker is so profitable in the global market. Those states are Delaware, Michigan, Nevada, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Connecticut. Navigating these complexities requires nuanced approaches from policymakers who must weigh economic gains against ethical considerations inherent in expanding gambling access. These include measures against problem gambling and initiatives promoting awareness about safe betting practices – elements that contribute to a healthier gambling ecosystem overall. With proper regulation, you can expect enhanced consumer protection measures designed to prevent fraud and promote responsible gambling practices.
In 2018, a bill was passed allowing poker home games with stakes of up to $1,000 to be played and hosted. The state has even taken active steps against online gambling in the past, including the attempted seizure of offshore site domain names. Internet poker is not expected to grow anytime soon because of the emphasis on sports betting revenue. Although the bill was unsuccessful, it demonstrates an increasing interest in expanding the state’s options for online gambling.
Delaware and Nevada signed the agreement as well, but those states each have only one operator, which is 888poker/WSOP. Iden rebuffed a counterproposal from Whitmer for internet gambling options, and a standstill ensued. The major poker sites were waiting for WV to sign the MSIGA, as the West Virginia poker market is too small to justify the cost of launching poker sites in that state alone. By the end of 2019, the lottery’s director and a delegation had traveled to Pennsylvania to discuss online gaming.
Over nearly three years, $114.5 million was paid to 45,180 former Full Tilt players, and that process concluded at the end of 2016. Poker players who got up early were logging onto PokerStars, Full Tilt, and Absolute Poker like they had for the last few years. They attached anti-online gambling language to the SAFE Port Act, and fellow Senators Bill Frist and Jon Kyl pushed the bill through the Senate. With the new legislation, some poker sites like PartyPoker pulled out of the United States. It experienced meteoric growth in a legal vacuum, mainly because the internet was so new that legislators were playing catch up. Most of the products were available online in early 2024, though there has yet to be a mention of online poker.
“By an 11-point margin (51%-40%), voters support approving iGaming in New York that will allow adults to place wagers online,” the survey notes. “The government’s reading of the statute, however, would most certainly create an odd and unharmonious piece of criminal legislation,” he wrote. New Hampshire won its second consecutive court victory against the U.S. government, reported Jeff Ifrah, a lawyer in the case. Adding New York would be a major boost to the Multi-State Internet Gaming Agreement (MSIGA), which currently includes Nevada, New Jersey, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Delaware, and West Virginia. Online gaming could provide the needed revenue to close the gap.
These aren’t afterthoughts bolted on later — they are core functions, ensuring operators can demonstrate compliance from day one. Our turnkey poker solutions are built with regulatory frameworks in mind, embedding AML monitoring, KYC checks, age verification, and reporting dashboards directly into the platform. Malta’s MGA proves consistency and clarity attract serious operators.
Live poker is legal at land-based venues, but online and remote poker are not permitted. Licensed sites operate under partnerships with land-based casinos. There are naturally quite a few offshore sites for poker play that accept Californians for registration for both tournament and cash game play.
But after legalizing sports betting in 2022, New York could be one of the next states to legalize online poker. Maryland lawmakers have talked about online gambling for several years, but the discussion has mostly centered upon legalizing of online lottery ticket sales while poker has taken a back seat. While the law is now in place, no regulated online poker sites are operating in Maine yet. Maine also permits live casino gambling, with Hollywood Casino Hotel & Raceway Bangor and Oxford Casino operating in the state, while sports betting has been legal since March 2022. What we mean by that is online poker isn’t legal in any form and there aren’t any licensed or regulated poker sites within the Hawkeye State.
Unlike sports betting, online poker is currently not provided or permitted by law in the state of Massachusetts. The Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Agency oversees the state’s thriving land-based casinos and mobile sports betting, but poker has not yet made its way into the online market. As of January 2026, Maine has officially become the ninth state to legalize online poker and the eighth state to legalize online casinos.
Recently, online betting was covered by the Senate Bill 1046 (2024), but poker was left out. Legislative efforts have mostly focused on sports betting in Missouri, but even that has failed. The change significantly improved tournament variety and player traffic.
As a result, DraftKings Casino and FanDuel Casino are the only two sports betting and online casino options in the state. Entering into agreements with foreign jurisdictions would be barred under the bill and only allow one account per player on a platform – putting the industry standard of banning multi-accounting into law in the state. The bill allows for tribal and commercial operators to run online poker in the state and sets a date of July 1 to go into effect.
- The National Association Against iGaming (NAAiG) has also lobbied against legalization.
- Under Muradian’s bill, the state’s three casinos – Plainridge Park Casino in Plainville, MGM Springfield, and Encore Boston Harbor in Everett – could offer up to three online gaming skins.
- Six of these states operate under the Multi-State Internet Gaming Agreement (MSIGA), allowing for shared liquidity and larger player pools.
- However, state-regulated US poker sites aren’t yet available in these two states.
One of only a few states in America to legalize and regulate online gambling, including online poker. This guide breaks down online poker laws by state, so you can quickly see where you can play and what the rules look like where you live (or travel). Supporters also believe legalization will move players from unregulated sites to a more protected environment. Although these sites have never been able to command the sort of traffic that was witnessed prior to Black Friday, they still provide a viable – and legal – alternative to not playing online poker at all!
The state legalized certain forms of casino gambling back in 2020, but regulations have focused exclusively on gaming at racetracks. In Missouri, playing poker online is not permitted under state law. The Mississippi Gaming Commission has studied online gambling frameworks but has not endorsed formal legislation.