Michigan to discuss iGaming legalisation
A state Senator is reportedly drafting a new online gambling bill in order to legalise the modality in Michigan.
US.- Senator Mike Kowall is reportedly working on a new draft of the online gambling bill SB 203. His initial Lawful Internet Gaming Act, SB.889, presented in 2016, passed the Senate Regulatory Reform Committee but then died in the Senate floor. The finalised bill could be released to the public in September.
Kowall’s office is planning to meet officials related to the subject in September to resolve details of the bill and get it done before the draft is finalised and released to the public. The discussion could take place during the 2017 session starting next month, but if other lawmakers show opposition, it could be delayed to 2018.
The Senator’s bill includes input from land-based casino representatives, Native American tribes and other parties interested in online gambling, igamingplayer.com reported. The bill introduced back in March passed the Senate Regulatory Reform Committee and moved to the Senate, and is now being reviewed by its creator in order to develop the proposal to include more voices.
Whilst changes have been introduced, the idea of having the Michigan Gaming Control Board create a framework for the online gambling industry remains the same. The measure would allow Michigan’s land based casinos to apply for online poker and casino game licenses, as well as interstate compacts with other states.
The biggest change in SB 203 is the introduction of tribe sovereignty to amend state compacts to regulate their own online gambling sites. Whilst they still would be forced to follow the state control board age requirements, among other things, they would have at least a year to prepare themselves and the state compacts to launch the online sites.
John Pappas, Poker Players Alliance executive director, said: “Michigan is progressing but rather slowly. The bill was updated a few weeks ago, but not all gaming stakeholders are satisfied with the changes. I don’t think we’ll see any more movement until the end of summer or early fall.”
