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Special Session Could Save Connecticut’s Gambling Expansion Efforts

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Online gaming and sports betting legislation have made headlines in several states this year. Now that the U.S. Supreme Court ruled Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA) unconstitutional, expect more headlines as the race to pass regulatory legislation at the state level heats up.

Connecticut was one of those states making headlines before the sports betting decision was handed down. Positive signs were indicating that enacting legislation in the Constitution State was a possibility – until it wasn’t. Though, with the new ruling on sports betting, the desire to push a sports betting bill through is still burning.

The tribal casinos supported online gaming

The first hopeful sign for the legislation came when the two Connecticut tribal casinos, Mashantucket Pequot and Mohegan came out in support of the online gaming legislation.

“I am here to express the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation’s support for legal sports gambling – both on-reservation and online – and more broadly, for regulated online gambling,” said Seth Young, Foxwoods’ executive director of online gaming in a written statement earlier in the year.

Avi Alroy, the vice president of interactive gaming for Mohegan Sun echoed Young’s sentiment in a statement of his own.

“To clarify, I believe that the state of Connecticut will benefit from both online casino gaming and sport wagering as it will reduce unregulated bets that are done locally and off-shore, and increase state revenues.”

The support of both of Connecticut’s tribal casinos was a solid foundation for the progression of legislation.

The complicated relationship between online gaming and tribal casinos

Connecticut is currently home to two Indian casinos, Foxwoods Resort Casino in Ledyard and Mohegan Sun in Uncasville. A third casino, co-owned by both tribes is under construction in East Windsor.

In their compact with the states, the tribes pay 25 percent of their slot machine revenue. In return, the tribes receive the exclusive right to operate slot machines in the state.

Nationally, online gaming legislation has more challenges in states where tribal casinos operate. Many tribal casinos have some sort of exclusivity agreement with the state in their compact, much like Connecticut’s tribes do.

New online gaming or sports betting legislation may require renegotiating those compacts. That doesn’t seem to sit well with the tribal casinos, and it isn’t as easy as it sounds.

Hopes dashed around online gaming and sports betting

The tribes felt an expansion into online gaming was the better opportunity. The state disagreed by focusing on sports betting. It introduced an amendment to exclude sports betting from the state’s gambling provisions.

That is when the tribe’s support wavered. According to reporting at LegalSportsReport, the tribes “threatened to stop slot revenue payments to the state if sports betting is legalized in Connecticut without their blessing.”

Connecticut Attorney General, George Jepsen was clear that tribes would not have exclusive sports betting rights in the state:

“Amendments to the Compacts would be necessary to authorize the Tribe’s sports betting … Thus, our opinion is that the Compacts do not presently authorize the Tribes to conduct sports betting on their reservations. Nor are we aware of any other federal or state law that would be a basis for the Tribes to assert an exclusive right over sports betting.”

The Connecticut 2018 legislative session ended without passing an online gaming or sports betting bill into law. It also left many open-action items that will require discussion to further the legislation in the next session.

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Gov. Malloy prepared to call a special session

It didn’t take long after the U.S. Supreme Court decision on Monday for Connecticut Gov. Dannel P. Malloy and Speaker of the House Joe Aresimowicz to come out in support of holding a special legislative session to discuss sports betting.

“In the coming days, I plan to deliberate with legislative leadership regarding the impact of this decision on the state,” Malloy said in a statement. “As of today, I am prepared to call the General Assembly into special session to consider legalizing sports betting in Connecticut.  It is incumbent on us to consider the question of legalized sports betting in a thoughtful way that ensures our approach is responsible, smart, and fully realizes the economic potential that this opportunity provides.”

Aresimowicz agrees the Supreme Court’s decision is important enough to require a special session.

“We have a bill ready to serve as a foundation that was worked on extensively this session in concert with many stakeholders including the NBA, MLB, the Tribes, OTB and the Lottery,” Aresimowicz said in a statement with the Hartford Courant. “As a state where gaming is an important sector of our economy, we need to look ahead and be ready for what is coming and act to keep us competitive with other states.”

The tribes and the state seem pretty far apart even with a bill ready to serve as a foundation. A compromise that both entities can agree on may be a lengthy process. A process that might be more appropriate to tackle during the regular legislative session.

What does the future hold for the national sports betting scene?

Discussions around online gaming and sports betting kicked into high gear this year.

The potential revenue for a state is enough of a reason to begin discussions. It doesn’t mean there is an easy road to passing legislation.

According to the National Indian Gaming Commision, there are 28 states with tribal casinos. Most likely any sports betting legislation or gaming expansion will require the renegotiation of compacts.

Compact changes only happen after the new legislation becomes the law. Tribal casinos have powerful voices because of the revenue they pay to states. Supporting legislation without a new compact in place is not something the tribes seem comfortable with.

Changes also mandate the involvement of the Department of Interior. Supporting a law without a signed agreement in place and more governmental interaction is not something the tribal casinos are usually excited about.

The bright spot is that online gaming and sports betting are coming out of hiding and making it to committees in several state legislatures.

There was no urgency in passing the legislation while awaiting the decision. That has changed now that the decision is here. States will have to take a position – even if it decides to take no position.

It will be up to the states to figure out what their state’s regulatory requirements are around sports betting and how that impacts the tribal casinos, if applicable.

The one sure bet is sports betting will continue to make headlines and fill our newsfeed for the next few months.

Stay tuned.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Five Players Whose World Series of Poker Plans Are A Mystery

The World Series of Poker in Las Vegas, Nevada presents a great opportunity for us to offer predictions. Bracelets, Player of the Year, and breakout players are all on the tip of pundit’s tongues. But it’s difficult to make these educated guesses when intentions for certain players remain a mystery.

The five players listed below are capable of winning a bracelet but past results in previous WSOP seasons and 2018 suggest predicting a specific result is anyone’s guess. One player you won’t find on the list this year is Phil Ivey, who recently told PokerNews he plans to return to the Rio to play some tournaments after skipping the previous three years.

1. Scott Blumstein

The reigning World Series of Poker Main Event champion has played sporadic poker since his win last July. Most of Blumstein’s tournaments have been on the World Poker Tour and he notched a single cash in Season XVI at his home casino of Borgata in New Jersey.

Blumstein ran deep in the Parx 1500 in March and finished ninth at a tough final table that included Justin Liberto, Christian Harder, and WPT runner-up Greg Weber.

Last summer, Blumstein played two events in Las Vegas: the Wynn Summer Classic Championship and the WSOP Main Event. The 26-year-old has yet to put in a full summer’s grind in Las Vegas during his career and perhaps the seven-figure bankroll influx is enough to get him to play a consistent schedule.

However many events Blumstein registers for, all eyes are on him in every single one.

2. Art Papazyan

Papazyan is a near lock to win Season XVI WPT Player of the Year honors. What comes next for Papazyan after that is conjecture. The Legends of Poker win in August started a string of tournaments entered by Papazyan and is the only time in his career he’s made a consistent effort to even register.

In 2017, Papazyan had a bankroll strong enough to enter the $10,000 WSOP Main Event but chose to grind cash games in Los Angeles, California instead. Papazyan says he will play at least the Main Event this summer but is uncommitted to plans outside of that tournament.

Cash games on Live at the Bike and in Los Angeles have Papazyan’s attention for now but that could change should the itch strike at any point.

3. Chris Ferguson

The reigning WSOP Player of the Year has not entered a single event since winning his sixth career bracelet last October in Rozvadov at WSOP Europe. Ferguson appeared out of thin air in 2016 to record his first tournament cashes since 2010.

He then went back into solitude until last summer when he put together a campaign for the ages, smashing the WSOP cashes record for a single year. He now has a banner waiting for him inside the Rio Convention Center.

Trying to predict what Ferguson has planned for an encore is a hunch, at best. He will likely show up at the bare minimum to accept his Player of the Year award and give a speech. That speech is a topic many in the poker world are curious about given Ferguson’s reluctance to give interviews since returning to the WSOP.

If Ferguson decides to chase a repeat POY performance, his two years back in the WSOP fold suggest he is a favorite to be in the running for most of the summer.

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4. Paul Volpe

This year is the first in Volpe’s career that he hasn’t notched a single cash prior to the WSOP. In fact, Volpe’s barely played any tournaments at all this year. The only tournament on record of Volpe participating in is the Borgata Winter Poker Open which requires a short drive from his home in Pennsylvania.

Volpe tends to travel out west for the spring WPT events but stayed home instead for Season XVI. Last summer, Volpe tweeted he wasn’t enjoying the tournament grind like he once did and that burnout may have carried over to 2018.

A first-ballot player on the list of best all-around in the game, Volpe can show up and snatch a bracelet without surprising anyone. Maybe the time off is what Volpe needs to come back strong and win his third career bracelet.

5. Cate Hall

Similar to Volpe, Hall has not been active on the WPT Main Tour this year. Even Hall’s vaunted Twitter account has slowed down. Her last major update came in April when Hall mentioned she was living in the Bay Area.

Hall alluded that she will be playing this summer but did not give any specific indication toward her schedule. She produced a respectable six cashes in 2017, including her first Main Event payout.

The Season XIV WPT Player of the Year contender is still working on her first career WSOP final table.

Summer is the time for a new awakening and Hall’s Twitter account and tournament game are both looking toward a welcomed revival.

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