Nevada Governor calls for interstate poker

Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval has called on the state legislature to pass laws allowing online poker operators to accept bets from other states “within 30 days”.

As part of yesterday’s annual State of the State address, Sandoval argued that with no sign of federal internet poker legislation being introduced in the near future, after Senator Harry Reid failed to introduce a bill in December, Nevada should take matters in its own hands and continue to drive US online gambling regulation forward.

The Democrat’s comments come after the state’s Gaming Control Board submitted a draft Assembly Bill 5 to the legislature last month proposing the legalisation of interstate online poker wagers from other states which have regulated egaming.

Sandoval said: “Nevada must continue to lead in other ways, and no opportunity is as rich with promise as our primary industry, gaming. Nevada was the first state to legalise and regulate online gaming. In the absence of federal action on this issue, Nevada must continue to lead. The Nevada Gaming Control Board will bring legislation to eliminate Nevada’s statutory barriers to interstate online poker, and ask for authority to enter into interstate agreements.

“Nevada has always been the gold standard of both gaming regulation and operation, and I intend to see to it that our state will lead the world into this new frontier. Other states are moving quickly on this issue and I ask you to pass a bill within 30 days. The promise of these ideas is real. The chance to innovate is exciting,” he added.

Under Nevada’s current online gambling regulations there is no provision to allow the Silver State to enter into compacts with other states, something which was included in Delaware’s legislation, signed into law in June last year.

The new bill proposes that any operator looking to take wagers in more than one state must hold an egaming licence in the relevant territories.