According to the Onlinepokereport.com website, the S6913 bill proposes that New York begin to offer online poker in both cash and tournament form.
A total of ten licences would be available, each with a lifetime of 10 years. The fee to obtain a licence would be set at $10 million (€7.2 million) while those who gain a licence would be subjected to a tax rate of 15% on gross gaming revenue.
The bill also includes a ‘bad actor’ clause, which states any person or asset involved with taking wagers from the US after the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) was introduced in 2006 is to be disqualified from gaining a licence.
According to the new proposal, allowing an operator that took wagers after the UIGEA was enforced would create unfair competition with those that respected federal and state laws.
In addition, the bill also features a compact option so New York can share player liquidity with other US states.
Bonacic said in a statement: “New Yorkers are today spending millions on overseas, illegal gaming sites that have no consumer protections or effective restrictions to keep minors from playing.
“I believe we need to start having a discussion on addressing this issue. That is why I have introduced legislation which would regulate online poker here in New York to protect consumers, prevent underage gaming, and combat problem gaming.”
The bill now sits with the Senate Committee on Racing, Gaming an Wagering, of which Bonacic is the chair.
The new bill comes shortly after iGaming Business reported that lawmakers from the Republican and Democratic US political parties introduced legislation in the House and Senate in an attempt to ban online gambling in the US.
The bills are aimed at reversing a decision in 2011 by Attorney General Eric Holder that a 1961 law used to ban internet gambling only applied to sports betting.
source : www.igamingbusiness.com
