Online Gambling Setback in New Jersey

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The online gambling bill sponsored by Senator Ray Lesniak was scheduled to be voted in the New Jersey Senate on May 31. However, reportedly because of lack of political support at this time, the bill was not put to vote and would probably have to wait until the autumn.

Lesniak said that there was lack of support from both the Democrats and Republicans. Lesniak said that there were not enough Democratic votes to pass the bill because of opposition from the horse racing industry. He put the blame for lack of Republican support on New Jersey Governor Chris Christie's ambivalent attitude. All along Lesniak had been saying that he had tailored this bill to accommodate the objections the Governor had raised to bill vetoed last year. But the Governor has been indicating that he does not want the bill to pass until fall. It could be that Governor Christie is under pressure from the larger party considerations in a presidential election year. The Republican Party donors may not look too kindly at an online gambling bill being passed. There is also talk of Christie getting a national role if a Republican becomes the President. Clearly, Christie is willing to sacrifice New Jersey online gambling for larger interests. Lesniak said, "We're going to work on it until the end of June and see if we can get it done by getting the governor's support or getting the Democratic votes." If it is not done by then, the legislature takes a break in July and August and therefore the vote will automatically shift to autumn.

However, there was good news for land casinos in Atlantic City. The New Jersey Senate approved the bill introduced by Jim Whelan that will allow 'on premises' mobile gambling from hand held devices in Atlantic City land casino resorts. Senator Whelan said that New Jersey has to change with the times in order to be ahead of the competition. The devices will provide an enjoyable experience for casino patrons and they will enhance the revenues for the casinos by allowing visitors to wager from the resorts.

There were some conditions attached. The state Division of Gaming Enforcement would have to verify that the devices will not work beyond the physical boundaries of the casino property. Patrons would have to establish a mobile betting account with the casino and all bets would have to be paid on casino grounds. David Rebuck, director of the Gaming Enforcement division was confident of coming up with regulations to ensure the integrity of the devices, as well as to prevent under age wagering. The bill will now move to the House. The date for the debate there has yet to be decided.

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