Update: PokerStars has paid out its US customers; Full Tilt has not and doesn't have the money to do so at this point. No timeline on when a US-based site will be allowed.
Senior Member
Update: PokerStars has paid out its US customers; Full Tilt has not and doesn't have the money to do so at this point. No timeline on when a US-based site will be allowed.
Black Belt in Candy Crush
Just what we need when new jobs are coming way short of projections...
Jacob, aka Meikyousisui on King.com & Worldwinner.com
Senior Member
The "Barton Bill" permitting internet poker in the US has been introduced in the House.
I love the Facebook support for this bill -- check out my state rep's facebook wall, just covered with pro-poker posts: Rep John D. Dingell | Facebook
Cliff notes (although still long) of the bill:
Who Licenses and Regulates
Most of this bill is about the relationship between the new Office of Internet Poker Oversight in the federal Commerce Department, the state agencies authorized by the Commerce Department to license and regulate poker sites and the licensed sites. The bill defines the general requirements, but leaves musch of the licensing and regulatory details up to the state agencies.
Prohibited Internet Gambling
All Internet Gambling will be prohibited except:
Sites licensed under this bill for Internet poker.
Sites operating outside the US that don't take wagers from the US.
Horseracing sites legal under the Horseracing Act
Intrastate Lotteries
Skill Game sites that are legal under existing laws.
Intratribal Igaming
Intrastate Igaming that was licensed by a state before enactment of this bill.
The penalty for prohibited Igambling is fines and up to 3 years imprisonment.
Unlicensed Internet Poker
The civil penalty for operating any site that is required to get a US license but doesn't have one is up to the total amounts wagered, or $1M/day of operation, whichever is greater. Criminal prosecution under other laws can apply as well.
There are no player penalties for unlicensed play.
State Agencies
Any state that wishes to license Ipoker sites can request authorization from Commerce for their designated agency to become an authorized State Agency for licensing and regulation. Commerce will examine the qualifications of the agency for approval, including such things as experience, size and qualifications of staff, enforcement and regulatory authority of the agency and conflicts of interest.
Site Licensing
Sites will apply to the State Agency for a license in the state where their gaming servers are located.
Sites must locate all their remote gaming equipment (gaming, customer interface, financial, etc.) within the US. The licensing State Agency can require all such equipment to be located within their state for purposes of regulation.
Initially, the only entities eligible for a license are:
Casino Gaming Facility: Operating 500 or more gaming devices (slots, vlts, etc., but not pari-mutuel wagering machines) for the past 5 years.
Qualified Card Room: licensed for at least 250 tables for the past 5 years.
Qualified Race Track: licensed for 500 or more gaming devices for the past 5 years, and $200M or more bets on horse racing during 3 of the last 5 years before enactment.
Slot machine or mobile gaming system manufacturers
After two years, Commerce can expand this (any way that want) at their discretion, with public notice and comment.
All suppliers for the sites must apply for a Certificate of Suitability from the State Agency.
Licenses last 5 years, and can be renewed.
Licensed sites must agree to US jurisdiction.
Licensing Qualifications
This is pretty much up to the State Agencies. The bill just requires normal licensing standards like honesty of the persons, criminal background, experience, financially qualified, etc.
The State Agencies are required to consider the scope of any unlicensed Igaming operated by the applicant prior to enactment of this bill (e.g., offshore sites), but no prohibition against them is specified.
Licensee Requirements
Licensees must comply with all State Agency regulations.
Licensees must have systems in place for:
Age verification (21+).
Location verification.
Taxes collected or reported on payment of proceeds (details below).
Payment of site taxes.
Prevention of fraud, money laundering and terrorist financing.
Player privacy and security protection.
Honesty and fairness of games.
Prevention of cheating. collusion, use of cheating devices, use of bots.
Licensing Fees
State Agencies can assess user fees on license applicants to cover the costs of investigations.
State Agencies can assess user fees on licensees to cover the costs of licensing and regulation, plus an amount for the feds to cover their costs.
All state fees collected are held by the US Treasury, accessible to the state for payment of costs.
These fees are just to cover costs.
State Opt-Outs
States are opted-in unless they opt out. Opt outs are by notice of the state governor or chief executive. No details are specified as to whether any action is required by a state legislature to authorize the governor to opt out. This would probably fall to state law whether the governor or the legislature has this authority under their state constitution.
Sites cannot accept play from anyone who resides in an opt-out state.
*Warning Bells*: The state opt out provision is written in a way that indicates that a state can limit the games offered, not just a straight opt-in/opt-out. However, the provision wording also specifies that licensed sites are not allowed to accept bets from anyone residing in a state that limits the games. It doesn't specify that a site has to limit play accordingly to those residents. The site can't take any play from those residents. This provision is contradictory.
Player Issues
The State Agency determines what game is acceptable as "Internet Poker" for a licensee. Another state agency or licensee can file a challenge with Commerce. Commerce decides within 30 days. Licensee or state agency can challenge decision in United States District Court for the District of Columbia
If a license is revoked, site must return player funds within 30 days to all players. Funds not returned must be placed in escrow under control of the Commerce.
Sites must have in place protections for compulsive gaming, including self-exclusion option. If a player self-excludes from one site, they will be excluded from all licensed sites.
If a court or related state agency makes notice of a child support delinquent, they will be put on the exclusion list. Only the same court or agency can remove them.
No use of credit cards allowed.
No Internet poker parlors allowed.
Cheating
The following forms of cheating are prohibited:
Violating site rules of play for the purpose of obtaining prohibited or unfair advantage.
Use of software or other device violating site rules to obtain advantage.
Use of cheating device to cheat or defraud any licensee or player.
Bots forbidden.
Penalties possible upon conviction:
Permanent ban from play.
Fines.
Up to 3 years imprisonment.
Site Taxes
This bill does not specify any taxes on licensed sites. I assume this will come in the form of a companion bill, such as the McDermott bill. Or, maybe this isn't the final form of the Barton Bill and tax provisions will be added.
Player Income Taxes
This bill does not make any changes to income taxes for players. It only specifies that sites must do tax collecting or reporting at the time of "any payment of proceeds".
The only tax collecting and reporting currently required for poker is:
As with live play, US players are not subject to withholding if they provide their Taxpayer ID Number (likely a W-9 Form to the site indicating that you are not subject to income tax withholding). Otherwise, poker players will be subject to 31% backup withholding on tournament winnings of 5K or more.
Foreign players will be subject to 30% withholding on all poker winnings unless they provide the proper documentation that they are from a country with a tax treaty on gambling winnings, just as with live play.
UIGEA-Strengthening
Requires the Treasury to publish a list of unlawful Internet gambling sites. This list will be used by payment processors (banks, etc.) to block transactions to the sites.
Other Legal Matters
Specifies that this act supersedes all state and tribal laws with regards to Internet Gambling and Internet Poker.
Specifies Wire Act does not apply to this act and horseracing act.
Specifies UIGEA does not apply to licensed play.
Commerce has 6 months to issue regulations to implement this bill.
This bill takes effect 30 days after enacted.
Senior Member
Full Tilt Poker has had its license revoked and is currently down -- has been for more than a day.
Member
FTP shut down sucks, had over 900$ left on there. Should have withdrawn everything instead of just most of it. Guess I'm never seeing that money again.
Senior Member
not so fast!Originally Posted by haueb
Full Tilt Poker, online: European investors to buy online poker firm Full Tilt Poker - latimes.com
Member
Oh, nice article, gives me some hope. I wouldn't be too bother with losing 900$, it would hurt, but I'ld be more bother with the fact that I'ld never play there again. I didn't know it was only 150 mill they owned the players. Howard could afford this (on his own) easily, I would have guessed it was around 1 billion. FTP being out of business doesn't bother me too much, I got my last exam on monday, this is taking away a distraction to me(I'm still a very lazy student).
I am just as happy that the brain game on king.com hasn't been officially released, cause I would spend a s***load of hours playing that as well.
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