New Jersey assembly approves online gambling bill

By a margin of almost 2 to 1 Tuesday the New Jersey House of Assembly again indicated its approval for regulated and licensed intrastate online gambling, the second time it has done so in as many years.

Last year Gov. Chris Christie vetoed a similar bill which had been strongly approved by both Assembly and Senate .

State Senator Ray Lesniak drove the bill, which has seen some amendments aimed mainly at placating the governor this time around, as the legislation now heads to the Senate for further consideration Thursday.

Interesting clauses in the bill include one allowing out-of-state punters to play, provided federal law permits this.

The Assembly vote Tuesday went 48 in favour, 25 against and 3 abstentions

During the debate, Democratic Party Assemblyman Vincent Prieto noted: “Most everything else has migrated to the Internet and taken advantage of the consumer and revenue options it offers, and New Jersey’s gaming industry should be no different.

“This is a carefully crafted bill designed to ensure Internet gaming on casino games is offered the right way. It’s a much-needed competitive step forward for our casinos that could also raise more revenue to benefit senior and disabled citizens.”

Fellow Assemblyman and Democrat, Ruben Ramos agreed, saying: “The Internet has long been a reality, and Internet gaming in New Jersey should now be reality too. We have to move aggressively and thoughtfully to position our gaming industry to succeed, and this is another step toward that goal. It will mean economic growth and job creation for our state.”

North Jersey.com reports that under the bill, all Internet gaming would be deemed to take place in Atlantic City and all equipment used in Internet gaming would be required to be located in Atlantic City.

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