The USA is a diverse country in many ways. What’s allowed in Jersey might be frowned upon in California or forbidden in Hawaii.
The US gambling and betting regulations support the claim above. Online casinos are legal in only six federal states for the time being. And the matter of gambling has been controversial for decades throughout the US.
California is one of the regions where the regulations around online and offline gambling are a bit blurry. So, let’s check out some latest updates on gambling laws in California.
The (Dis)Comfort of Online Gambling
If you’ve been following the Californian gambling scene, you probably know that the rule of thumb says no online casinos in the Golden State. The California Gambling Control Commission is strict about that, and it doesn’t issue any licenses to organizations that wish to launch online casinos.
However, this doesn’t mean Californians can’t insert a coin or two into alternative online slots. Offshore casinos serve as surrogates for non-existing digital gambling parlors in California. Even though online gambling sites exclusive to Californians are rare or non-existent, there’s a variety of attractive options with high welcome bonuses, instant payouts, and smooth gaming options. As gambling insider Jonathan Askew explains, both online gambling and sports betting won’t be legalized any time soon; at least not during 2024 and 2025.
Even though the Californian gambling regulations aren’t as strict as those in Hawaii or Utah – where any form of gambling or betting is strictly prohibited – the folks will still have to wait for full comfort.
But Why Can’t You Gamble in CA?
Actually, you can gamble in the Great State of California. According to the California Department of Justice, there are more than 76 legal, licensed casinos and cardrooms in this state.
What’s the catch then?
The main reason why commercial casinos don’t get operational licenses in this federal state are the compacts that the State of California has signed with Indian tribes in the last few decades.
According to these agreements, the tribes in question have exclusive rights over betting and gambling outposts throughout this state. In addition to those tribe-owned casinos, Californians can also try their luck in cardrooms. The games they can play there are mostly card games – hence the name – and mostly differ from gaming options available at brick-and-mortar casinos.
If we know that some 70 Californian tribes own one or more casinos, out of 109 state tribes, it’s clear that the decision on issuing licenses for online casinos must be achieved through a consensus. This compromise must be a joint effort of all the relevant stakeholders (pun intended) – the representatives of the State of California, the owners of tribal casinos, and the managers of commercial gambling companies.
When they reach a common interest in sharing the approximate annual revenue of $9 billion – which is how much tribal casinos generate in California for the time being – we’ll see a more flexible law that allows commercial online casinos in this state. The further growth of this industry could pour in even more taxes to the California budget to the benefit of the community, from fighting homelessness to improving public schools.
Is the Change Coming – Propositions 26 and 27
In November 2022, there was a referendum in California, regarding the legal matters of online betting and gambling.
In retrospect, Proposition 26 and Proposition 27 – which were the subject of voting – would legalize online betting and gambling in two different ways. Let’s go over these two options and explain why they’re important for the potential legalization of these affairs.
Proposition 26
This proposition was intended to legalize sports betting at tribal casinos and certain horse racing tracks. The main proponents of this measure were California’s tribes that handle the currently legal state casinos, while the opponents were gambling and betting companies. According to The LA Times, the opposing parties raised #132.2 million and $43.8 million, respectively, which they mostly invested in TV advertising and petitions.
Proposition 27
On the other hand, Proposition 27 would specify how and when the State of California could issue online sports betting licenses to both Indian tribes and commercial gambling companies.
In this case, the latter invested more assets – some $249.4 million – than the former – about $169.1 million. This makes sense because gambling and betting companies only need to win their positions in this legislative combat.
Again, most of the raised funds were spent on TV commercials and petitions, but this time for a different set of services.
New Initiatives in 2024
However, all these efforts and assets – more than $650 million altogether – were in vain. At the referendum held on November 9, 2022, Californian voters rejected both these propositions. Interestingly, almost 70% of those who voted said ‘No’ to these measures but this wasn’t the end of the struggle for better iGaming conditions in California.
For instance, The California Tribal Sports Betting Initiative – meant to legalize sports betting for adults on sporting and athletic events on a professional, amateur, and university level – could be adopted already on November 5, 2024, when it will be placed on the ballot as part of a constitutional amendment. However, as federally authorized Indian tribes would be in charge of implementing such a decision, with the addition of organizing in-person and online sports betting, we can expect further lobbying and campaigning of both pro and con parties.
Such initiatives could lead to the additional democratization of online betting and gambling options, from crypto casinos and instant payouts to entirely new platforms for a holistic iGaming experience.
