Initially the bill was vetoed by the Governor due to issues surrounding transparency and taxes. Lawmakers adjusted the text and the amended bill passed by an overwhelming majority in the legislature and earned Christie’s seal of approval.
Listed below are the basics of the bill:
– Casinos situated in Atlantic City will be able to apply for a license to offer online gambling. Only the twelve official Atlantic City casinos will soon be eligible for the license. No other organizations could possibly offer internet gambling, and face stiff fines if they do. All facilities used for the operation of internet gambling should be located within city limits; only bets that are received by a server in Atlantic City will soon be legal.
– Players should be “physically present” in New Jersey to position wagers. As time goes by, New Jersey may develop agreements with other states where internet gambling is legal to permit out-of-state gambling. The casino’s equipment must verify players’ locations before accepting wagers.
– Any games offered to play in the casinos can be played online. (For comparison, Nevada only allows poker.) As of this moment, sports betting won’t be protected by this bill, although their state of New Jersey is wanting to fight the federal statute barring the legalization of sports betting.
– The bill has a myriad of provisions to help keep gambling addiction away, such as for example requiring the prominent display of the 1-800-GAMBLER hotline number, ways to set maximum bets and losses over a specific time period, and tracking player losses to identify and limit users who may demonstrate addictive gambling behavior.
– Revenue from online gambling will carry a 15% tax. The Christie administration states that about $180 million in revenue for their state will soon be generated using this tax, however, many analysts think this number is seriously overestimated.
The official regulations, that the bill required the Division of Gaming Enforcement to create, were released on June 3, and are at the mercy of a “public comment period” until August 2 before being finalized. These rules include details such as for example how a casino acquires the right licenses and procedures for maintaining network security on gambling sites.
So, will online gambling actually benefit their state?
The Good
Revenues from Atlantic City casinos have been on the decline for yesteryear seven years, and online gambling might be what saves the failing casinos. Since 2006, casino revenue has dropped from $5.2 billion to around $3 billion. https://13.215.6.226/ Online gambling might be a $500 million to $1 billion industry in New Jersey, which may be enough to help keep struggling casinos afloat and save jobs in Atlantic City. Further, even though estimates of tax revenue are all around the map, there is prospect of online gambling to be a considerably valuable source of money for the state. The casinos will also need to pay a tax to the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority, that will provide further assist with struggling casinos in Atlantic City.
For the ball player, low overhead costs mean better prizes and more opportunities to play. Casinos can incent players with free “chips” which have minimal costs for them but give players more opportunities to play and win. The ease of gambling online allows players to play more with less travel.
BAD:
One of many goals of the bill is supposedly to attract more individuals to visit the brick-and-mortar casinos, but it’s hard to state if online gambling will in actuality lead to this outcome. You can speculate it could even cause people to attend the casinos less (However, this seems unlikely; the social element and the free drinks are lost in online gambling. Also, research indicates that, at the very least with poker, internet gaming doesn’t reduce casino gaming.) Advertising for the host casino will soon be allowed on the internet gambling sites, which could possibly encourage people to visit the casino but may be annoying for players.
Online gambling might be seriously devastating for people who have gambling addictions, as well as cause people to develop them, raising financial and moral concerns. Even with the preventative steps the bill requires, it will surely be much harder to cut off compulsive gamblers if they are able to place bets anywhere with a web connection.
Regardless, it will be considered a while prior to the casinos can actually start up their online gambling offerings. The regulations need to be finalized and casinos need to apply for licensure and develop their gambling websites. This implies the casinos won’t be enjoying this new source of revenue throughout the 2013 summer season, that could be Atlantic City’s toughest season ever following recovery from Hurricane Sandy.