On Tuesday, the bill whizzed through the Senate Community, Economic & Recreational Development Committee by an 11-3 vote and the Senate Appropriations Committee, 24-2. With this approval the bill now goes back to the House for further evaluation.
The bill calls for online casino game revenue taxes to be set at 54 %, which gaming industry experts agree is too high and could asphyxiate the market. For internet poker taxes have been set at 16 %. The licensing fee for an online casino is US$ 5 million, which does not include online poker rooms. The bill stipulates that operators must obtain separate licenses for online casino games and online poker.
Under the law, users must be under 21 and within state borders and operators must have players protections in place.
In addition to online poker and casino games, the bill would legalise daily fantasy sports and online lottery sales. The local host fee issue has supposedly been fixed after the state Supreme Court deemed them illegal last year. Gaming tablets in airports are also authorized in the bill, but expansion of video gaming terminals in non-casino locations, such as taverns, is not.
Source: GMB / Innovate Gaming / Flushdraw.net
