When a state legislature committee hearing is taken over by poker players, the game of skill argument, and general poker lingo, a good day for the game can be logged in the books. But an official committee vote next week will determine whether that is indeed a true statement.
The March 25th hearing in the Texas House Licensing and Administrative Procedures Committee set aside an afternoon time to listen to testimony regarding House Bill 222. The bill, also known as the Poker Gaming Act of 2009, introduced by Rep. Jose Menendez (D-San Antonio) in November 2008 is one that intends to make poker legal, regulated, and taxed in Texas. The legislation is also intended to create a safe playing environment for those who simply want to play cards rather than risk their lives, as has been the case with a recent rash of armed robberies of private games.
Many came to the State Capitol to take the stand on behalf of HB 222, such as poker player and Bluff columnist Michele Lewis, who discussed the safety concerns of playing in back room games as well as the contention that poker is a safer investment in today’s economy than the stock market or real estate. She also discussed the recent Cigital study that unequivocally showed poker as a game of skill.
Also on hand was Vernon Harrison, president of the Texas Card Players Association. Representing its 500 members, he discussed the tax that would be placed on establishments that would choose to run poker rooms. “Poker players are the only people in the state of Texas saying, ‘Please tax us.’ We want what we would get for that tax, which is a safe place to play poker.”
The committee will hold a vote on HB 222 next week, though an exact date has not been announced. But the majority of the nine-member committee may vote it through to push it forward in the legislative process. According to Dan Michalski of Pokerati.com, as a former Texas resident and state politics insider, four of the committee members are very likely to vote for the bill, while two will definitely vote against it. The others, especially Chairman Edmund Keumpel, are unknown in their stand on the issue. Thus, the importance of reaching out to those committee members en masse through e-mails and phone calls can’t be overstated.
The March 25th hearing in the Texas House Licensing and Administrative Procedures Committee set aside an afternoon time to listen to testimony regarding House Bill 222. The bill, also known as the Poker Gaming Act of 2009, introduced by Rep. Jose Menendez (D-San Antonio) in November 2008 is one that intends to make poker legal, regulated, and taxed in Texas. The legislation is also intended to create a safe playing environment for those who simply want to play cards rather than risk their lives, as has been the case with a recent rash of armed robberies of private games.
Many came to the State Capitol to take the stand on behalf of HB 222, such as poker player and Bluff columnist Michele Lewis, who discussed the safety concerns of playing in back room games as well as the contention that poker is a safer investment in today’s economy than the stock market or real estate. She also discussed the recent Cigital study that unequivocally showed poker as a game of skill.
Also on hand was Vernon Harrison, president of the Texas Card Players Association. Representing its 500 members, he discussed the tax that would be placed on establishments that would choose to run poker rooms. “Poker players are the only people in the state of Texas saying, ‘Please tax us.’ We want what we would get for that tax, which is a safe place to play poker.”
The committee will hold a vote on HB 222 next week, though an exact date has not been announced. But the majority of the nine-member committee may vote it through to push it forward in the legislative process. According to Dan Michalski of Pokerati.com, as a former Texas resident and state politics insider, four of the committee members are very likely to vote for the bill, while two will definitely vote against it. The others, especially Chairman Edmund Keumpel, are unknown in their stand on the issue. Thus, the importance of reaching out to those committee members en masse through e-mails and phone calls can’t be overstated.
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