Is Online Poker Legal In Ct
Playing Poker Legally in Connecticut. Is Online Poker Legal in Connecticut? Online poker isn’t specifically addressed. However, if you take into account Connecticut’s transmission laws, you can assume that it’s probably not. Transmission of gambling information. Connecticut State Senator Catherine Osten introduced yet another bill, this one to legalize online poker and casino games, online keno and lottery ticket sales, and sports wagering. SB.21 would authorize the two tribes to conduct most of the games, with the Connecticut Lottery Corporation handling the lottery tickets and keno online. Home Poker Law by State. I’ve categorized the various legal stances of the different states below. They all loosely fall into one of the following groups: prohibited, legal, legal if social guidelines are followed, legal if social guidelines plus other rules are followed, and downright confusing. Legal and Illegal Gambling. Fantasy Contests in Connecticut — 2017-R-0276; Questions On Internet Gambling And Keno — 2012-R-0077; Department Of Justice Ruling On Internet Lottery Ticket Sales — 2012-R-0036; Legality of Online Poker — 2011-R-0229; Legality of Poker in Connecticut — 2007-R-0495; Bogus Sweepstakes — 2004-R-0735; State Agency Oversight. The purpose of this article is twofold. First, we attempt to summarize the current legal status of online poker in the United States. You may be surprised to learn that, despite a confusing legal landscape, it is generally accepted that playing online poker is currently legal in the U.S., at least at the federal level.
Home » US Poker Laws » State Laws » Connecticut Poker Laws
Relevant state code: 112–557 et seq.; 53–278a et seq.
Connecticut falls in the wide middle of US states when it comes to gambling law. There are several legal, regulated forms of gambling in Connecticut, but with that wide variety comes a set of fairly strict laws with regards to unlicensed gambling. As with most states that play host to regulated gambling, the legal definition of gambling in Connecticut is very broad:
Section 53–278a
‘Gambling’ means risking any money, credit, deposit or other thing of value for gain contingent in whole or in part upon lot, chance or the operation of a gambling device, including the playing of a casino gambling game such as blackjack, poker, craps, roulette or a slot machine
This definition is one of only a handful that mentions poker specifically. As opposed to some other states that employ the dominant factor test when distinguishing between games of skill and chance, Connecticut appears to view any chance (‘in whole or in part’) inherent in an activity as sufficient to classify that activity as gambling — assuming that wagering is involved.
The majority of penalties in Connecticut gambling law are reserved for those that operate unlicensed gambling businesses or assist in the operation or advancement of such businesses. Illegal gambling on the part of a player is a class B misdemeanor in Connecticut, although we were unable to uncover any prosecutions of players by Connecticut officials in our research.
Is Any Gambling Legal Under Connecticut Law?
Yes. Connecticut allows various types of parimutuel betting on horse and dog racing. Off-track betting and wagering on out-of-state racing is permitted. Pequot and Mohegan tribes are allowed to operate casinos in Connecticut and offer a full range of games, including slots.
Social gambling is expressly permitted under Connecticut law. To qualify as social gambling, participants must have a relationship beyond the gambling event and no one can profit from the operation of the game. So, a home poker game among friends with no rake or charge would likely be legal; a game run out of a bar that takes a rake would be illegal.
Charitable gaming in the form of licensed bingo, sealed tickets and raffles is legal in Connecticut. Learn more about the state’s policies and procedures for charitable gambling at the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection website.
Is Playing Poker Legal in Connecticut?
Players taking part in a poker game at a licensed tribal casino such as Foxwoods or in a social context where no one is profiting from the business of operating the game are not in violation of Connecticut law.
Otherwise, playing poker for anything of value is expressly illegal in the state, thanks to the inclusion of poker in Connecticut’s legal definition of gambling. For more reading on this topic, visit this 2007 report prepared by the Connecticut Office of Legislative Research.
Are Online Poker Sites Legal in Connecticut?
Current law makes no mention of online gambling or online poker sites. The only official position of the Connecticut government on this issue appears to be expressed on the Department of Consumer Protection website, which asserts that online gambling is illegal based on the theory that any form of gambling not expressly authorized by Connecticut law is illegal by default.
Connecticut also has a ‘transmission’ law which makes it illegal to send or receive information (or to maintain or install equipment used to sending or receiving information) ‘with respect to any wager made in the course of, and any information intended to be used for, professional gambling.’ This law would seem to clearly prohibit online casino and sportsbook wagers, but how such laws might apply to poker is a much murkier area.
Short version: Gambling online is likely technically illegal under Connecticut law for both the player and the poker site. With the uncertainty surrounding the issue, it appears highly unlikely that any individual poker player would be prosecuted under current law.
Connecticut Gambling Law — Fun Facts
Wagering on Jai-alai in a licensed environment is legal under Connecticut law.
Gambling losses over $1 that result from unlicensed gambling can be recovered via civil action.
Senior citizens organizations are allowed to operate bingo games without first obtaining a permit.
Connecticut and Online Gambling: Current Developments
Connecticut appears to be in the early stages of considering online gambling regulation. While there has yet to be a formal bill proposed, the Governor’s Office recently called online gambling in Connecticut ‘inevitable’ and Foxwoods, the largest Indian casino in the state, has indicated that they’re interested in advancing regulation of online gambling.
Will Regulated Online Poker Come to Connecticut?
Residents of Connecticut should feel fairly optimistic about the chances for regulated online poker sites in their state within the next few years. While the state itself has a relatively small potential player pool amongst its roughly 3.5 million residents, poker is quite popular in Connecticut thanks largely to Foxwoods’ reputation as a poker mecca for the East Coast.
Amplifying those favorable conditions: There appears to be at least some legislative support for regulation, and the Mashantucket Pequot tribe (owners of Foxwoods) appear motivated to embrace online gambling regulation.
Given the national reach and influence of the Mashantucket Pequot tribe, one would expect Connecticut to focus more on developing an interstate online poker network than to settle for a relatively small intrastate poker room with only limited financial potential.
Last December, a Connecticut lawmaker said that “You can bet on” sports betting becoming a legal activity in 2021. On Wednesday, the state’s governor echoed those sentiments and made it seem like all forms of online gambling would be legal as well.
Gov. Ned Lamont released his two-year state budget Wednesday and he allotted $47.3 million in tax revenue from the second year of expanded gambling, according to a report from the Hartford Courant.
Based on comments made by Lamont at the time of the release of his budget proposal, it appears expanded gambling includes both retail and online sports betting, as well as online casino gaming.
“Our neighboring states are moving forward with sports betting and iGaming, and Connecticut should not leave these opportunities for other states to benefit from our inaction,” said Lamont. “My administration has been in active negotiations with our tribal partners to bring the state’s gaming economy into the digital age. And I am submitting legislation which reflects what I believe to be the best bet in ending this stalemate of inaction in a way which is in the best interest of the entire state.”
Both Rhode Island and New Hampshire already offer online and brick-and-mortar sports betting, and New York seems set to expand its sports betting market after recent comments made by Gov. Andrew Cuomo. Pennsylvania has also seen increased revenues after legalizing all forms of online gambling.
The tribal partners Lamont was referring to is the Mashantucket Pequot Tribe, which runs Foxwoods Resort Casino and the Mohegan Tribe, which is in charge of Mohegan Sun. Currently, nearly all forms of gambling, outside of the lottery and off-track betting, runs through those two tribes.
Is Online Poker Legal In Ct Scan
The pandemic has hurt the brick-and-mortar revenue of those two tribes’ casinos, which in turn has put a dent in the state coffers. Connecticut is facing a $1 billion deficit at the time of Lamont’s budget proposal.
Lamont made comments in December that seemed like he was ready for Connecticut to mirror the models in place in New Jersey and Pennsylvania.
“If we found out anything in the course of this horrible COVID cycle, more and more of the world is going virtual,” said Lamont at the end of last year. “More and more of the world is going online. That’s tele-health and tele-learning, but it’s also iGaming and sports betting. And I don’t think you want Connecticut left behind.”
Is Online Sports Gambling Legal In Ct
With any proposed gambling expansion, those two entities will be at the center of the negotiations. The Courant’s report says that the governor and the tribes have been in “long-running talks” about whether the tribes will have exclusive rights, like they currently do, for any form of gambling expansion.
Foxwoods announced a partnership with daily fantasy sports giant DraftKings at the end of 2020, which gives the Boston-based online sportsbook a track to the Connecticut market regardless of any pending agreements.
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