Kasper Trying Again in North Dakota

North Dakota state representative, Jim Kasper, is once again making an attempt to get online poker legalized in his state. Last year, he was successful in getting a bill through the state’s House of Representatives, but it met a bloody death in the Senate when the United States Department of Justice sent a letter warning that online poker may be illegal according to the now infamous Wire Act of 1961. This scared everyone off and that was that.

Now Kasper is giving it another go. The bill would allow online poker rooms to setup shop in North Dakota, requiring them to have their servers in the state, as well as use the state-owned bank. Using the bank would allow a close eye to be kept on possible money laundering, as well as keep player funds safe. The bill also addresses addiction and underage gambling issues, requiring software controls and some state oversight.

One big change is that the online poker rooms would have to have no connection to sports betting, in order to avoid any possible conflicts with the Wire Act.

Additionally, some of the revenue the state would bring in from the online poker rooms would go to lowering property taxes for its residents. One would also imagine that jobs would be created if this bill passed.

Originally published September 20, 2006