New Jersey Legalizes Online Gambling
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie has made his state the third in the United States to open its doors to legalized online gambling after signing a bill into law this week.
Earlier on in the month, Christie vetoed the bill, which was introduced by State Senator Ray Lesniak, with conditions set that if minor changes were made, he would sign it.
Legislators made the necessary changes, which included increasing tax paid by operators from 10% to 15%, and ensuring that sufficient funds are earmarked for responsible gambling groups.
As such, Christie was ready to sign the bill when it landed back on his desk on February 26th.
"This was a critical decision and one that I did not make lightly," said Christie. "But with the proper regulatory framework and safeguards that I insisted on, including in the bill, I am confident that we are offering a responsible yet exciting option that will make Atlantic City more competitive, while also bringing financial benefits to New Jersey as a whole."
Bill will Benefit Atlantic City Casinos
The New Jersey online gambling bill will allow Atlantic City casinos to offer online versions of all the games currently legal at land casinos in the state. These include card and table games such as blackjack and roulette, as well as poker.
This is the largest expansion of legalized gambling in the Garden State since the first casino opened its doors in Atlantic City in the late seventies.
In recent years, Atlantic City casino revenues have been on a downward slide, affected by economic depression and competition from neighboring states.
The new law will help these struggling casinos to attract new players who will be able to win comps such as show tickets, meals and accommodation by playing online.
It will take up to nine months to set up the new online gambling industry in New Jersey.
NJ to Offer Interstate Online Gambling
While the law at present only allows residents or visitors inside New Jersey to play at online gambling sites, there are clauses in the bill which will enable New Jersey to expand its player pools outside of state borders with equal minded, regulated states.
This pooled player model is fixed on the same one used to pool drawings for big lottery games such as Mega Millions, and could work well with smaller states such as Delaware and Nevada seeking to expand their own parameters.
