Proposed amendments released Tuesday for California's online poker bill show that there is a real ongoing effort to reach compromise on the one major roadblock remaining. Stakeholder reaction remains to be seen, but Assemblyman Adam Gray and his team may have accomplished what seemed impossible even four months ago — coming up with language to break the stalemate and move regulation of online poker forward in the Golden State. This year.
There were two seemingly insurmountable issues preventing online poker legislation in California entering 2016 — horse racing participation and bad-actor provisions. Gray addressed the first with a compromise between the tribes and tracks in February, and with these new proposals he introduces a path for the two main factions of gaming tribes to support the bill.