California Poker Bill Amended

August 12 - Online poker fans have been given a minor set back with the news that the much talked-about California poker bill, AB 2026 needs to be re-amended.

The AB 2026 was originally proposed in order to study the general online poker industry, with the ultimate intention of legalizing online poker in the state of California. The bill was subsequently amended so that the study stage was done away with, skipping directly to the point of legalizing and regulating Californian online poker.

However, poker players rejoiced too soon, apparently. The latest news is that the AB 2026 has now been re-amended, calling for the original study phases to be reintroduced into the process before the bill can reach the legalization stage.

In a somewhat verbose statement regarding the re-amendment of the California poker bill, the following declaration was made: "The enactment of this act does not authorize the play of internet poker. In enacting this act, it is merely the intent of the Legislature to have the appropriate state agencies develop a suggested structure, potential regulatory guidelines, and estimate on the amount of revenues to the State of California that may be generated by the play of internet poker for possible consideration in the future."

The California poker bill was approved in June by the Senate Governmental Organization Committee and passed on to the Senate Appropriations Committee earlier this month for final approval.

However, disappointingly for online poker fans, the final committee decided that the bill should be re-amended to its original form and a study process into the feasibility of online poker in California would need to be carried out.