Wyoming’s online gambling legislation includes poker player pooling
Wyoming lawmakers unexpectedly introduced legislation last week that would authorize online casinos. In what could be a positive move for poker players in the state, it would also authorize Wyoming to join a gaming compact for multi-state online poker.
Representatives Bob Davis, John Conrad, and others introduced HB 120 on Wednesday in hopes of issuing at least five licenses for online casino gaming, with operators required to pay a 10% tax rate. The bill also contains language to permit the state to enter a multi-state gaming compact like the Multi-State Internet Gaming Agreement (MSIGA) for online poker, joining a player pool that currently includes Michigan, New Jersey, Delaware, Nevada and West Virginia.
“The state may enter into reciprocal agreements with permissible jurisdictions for the conduct of interactive gaming, provided the agreements are not inconsistent with federal law and the law of the jurisdiction in which the person placing a wager is located,” reads the bill.
The proposal describes “permissible jurisdiction” as a “jurisdiction other than Wyoming where wagers on interactive gaming may be accepted pursuant to an interactive gaming reciprocal agreement.”
Wyoming also has two native tribes, the Northern Arapaho and the Eastern Shoshone Tribe of the Wind River Reservation, which have compacts with the state to offer retail sports betting. However, it’s unclear if they’ll be allowed to offer online casino games under HB 120.
iGaming in Wyoming would be regulated by the state’s Gaming Commission, which can issue up to five online gaming operator licenses. Providers must pay an initial $100,000 licensing fee, which can be renewed every five years for $50,000. Operators would also be permitted to enter into mutual agreements with other states due to Wyoming’s low population of 584,000.
