The legalisation of online poker in California was set back once again Tuesday when Sen. Rod Wright, sponsor of the measure and chairman of the Senate Governmental Organization Committee, pulled the bill off the committee agenda before it could be discussed.
Senate Bill 1463, which would legalise and regulate online poker in California, was scheduled for a vote in the committee Tuesday after substantial amendments to placate opponents (see previous reports).
Wright announced to a crowded room at the start of the hearing that he had decided to pull the bill from the agenda, without explaining why.
Despite months of talks and ‘accommodations’, the legislation faced opposition from major gambling tribes and card rooms, including many that support the idea of legalising online poker but oppose the specifics in the Wright and Steinberg bill.