Autonomous powers granted to individual states make the U.S. gambling outlook complicated to the outsider. California’s betting regulations are not as prohibitive as states like Hawaii or Utah, but there is still a way to go before the state offers as open a betting market as Nevada or New Jersey.
California provides a more relaxed stance on gambling than its neighboring state, with online casinos falling into a somewhat gray area. While the state’s regulatory board, the California Gambling Control Commission, does not licence any online casinos within the state’s borders, players are not prohibited from accessing sites that hold licences issued elsewhere. That means players are free to visit the best, fastest payout online casino sites that are based in Curacao, Panama, and other gambling havens. In fact, according to casino expert Karina Allan, some of these sites offer near-instant payouts of any winnings, making them even more convenient than many onshore sites in states with regulated markets which can take days to process withdrawal requests.
As well as these sites, tribal casinos offer Californians a legitimate way to place bets in person. There are 76 Indian casinos active in California, with a further 5 mini-casinos operating. Of the state’s 109 tribes, 73 own gaming casinos, which together generate approximately $9 billion per year. This makes California the biggest Indian gaming state in the U.S.
Californian tribal casinos have different age restrictions based on the betting markets available and whether they are licensed to serve alcohol. A minimum age of 21 is set for premises that serve alcohol and have bingo or poker facilities. Casinos that don’t serve alcohol, and offer horse race betting or lotteries have minimum age limits of 18.
In some cases, casinos can permit people under the minimum age access to unrestricted casino areas, but poker rooms will always have a minimum age requirement of 21.
Indian casinos are regulated under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act. Tribal-state compacts are typically in place to define how much the state will earn from Indian casinos. Indian casinos are exempt from tax but will usually pay gaming fees for the right to operate.
Another form of gambling that was legalized in 1984 following a voter referendum is the California State Lottery. The California Lottery offers players draw games and scratch cards.
The California State Lottery Act of 1984 was authorized in Proposition 37 and went live in October 1985. The purpose of the Lottery Act was to generate funds for schooling and education without imposing additional taxes on Californian residents.
Since its launch, the California Lottery has raised over $41 billion for schools and in 2010, Assembly Bill 142 increased the amount allocated to education to 87%, decreasing administration costs to 13%.
Horse racing in California is popular with fans able to enjoy parimutuel wagering at racetracks and satellite facilities. Parimutuel betting sees the total placed on a race pooled, with the winnings split after the house take and taxes are removed.
Charitable gaming, including bingo, raffles, and poker nights, is also legal in the state of California. Legislation was passed in 1976 to allow charitable bingo games and this was joined in 2001 by charitable raffles after an amendment was passed in 2000. Poker fundraising legislation was approved in 2007.
Californian cardrooms provide card players with licensed premises where they can play games like poker against other players rather than the house. Non-banked card games have always been legal in the state of California.
Independent operators that run the ‘house’ earn revenue by charging players fees and cardroom regulations came into play in 1984. The Gambling Control Act was first adopted in 1997 and created the California Gambling Control Commission as a way of regulating card rooms.
Online and in-person sports betting in California remains prohibited at present. The most recent attempts to legalize it would have given Californian tribes exclusive online and retail sports betting rights but failed after tribal support was withdrawn.
The Sports Wagering Regulation and Tribal Gaming Protection Act had proposed that 10% of the sports betting gross gaming revenue would go towards a Californian mental health and homelessness fund. It also proposed partnerships with sports betting operators.
Following record online betting revenues for states including New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania, the Californian betting industry is unlikely to give up on its push for online betting legislation.
Online casino gaming is likely to be part of any future proposal that could generate significant amounts for the state.
