Learning Casino Games

There seems to be a different school of thought amongst the tribes operating Indian casinos, on their position to either support or oppose the regulation of online poker. Bills have been presented before congress in many state legislatures, proposing rules for online casino poker regulation, which is causing debate among the tribal leaders.

Barney Frank’s bill seeking to regulate online gaming at a national level and measures in states like California, Florida, Iowa, and New Jersey, are intended to establish regulated intrastate Internet poker. Frank’s bill would eventually render the UIGEA debatable, while the local proposals would act under its guidance, restricting play and operation within state borders. In California, the Morongo Band of Mission Indians has been a leader in promoting intrastate online poker.

The tribe is pushing a bill that would combine tribal casinos with state-licensed card rooms as Internet gaming operators. Morongo reps state that online poker players are a new market, detached from the customers using the land-based casinos, and would enhance the gambling revenue of tribes. But the tribes tend to disagree and are of the opinion, that online poker would divert customers form one from of gambling to another, and that online poker regulations may even go to the extent of opening the door to ambiguities, resulting in states canceling gambling compacts.

While many California tribes owning one of the nation’s strongest gaming compacts, are suspicious of cannibalization of their slot players by online poker, tribes in other states are less apprehensive. Tribes that are located in less crowded states see online gaming operators as their answer to successfully using the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act.