The Nevada Assembly Judiciary Committee yesterday postponed action on AB296, a bill that would enable Nevada casinos to offer Internet gambling services. The bill was originally scheduled for discussion during yesterday's "work session," but was unexpectedly dropped from the schedule.
Instead, the bill will be heard during Monday's session, although Assemblywoman Merle Berman, the bill's sponsor, was not sure where the bill would be placed on the schedule.
Monday is the last day for any action by the state assembly, which meets every other year. Timing it for the last day could be worrisome, especially since several groups had indicated during a March 30 hearing for AB296 that they had concerns about the bill or wanted to introduce some type of amendment to the bill.
A deadline of April 5 was set for any amendments, and, as it turned out, only two amendments were received--one from the Nevada Gaming Control Board and another from Bob Faiss, a partner with the Nevada gaming law firm Lionel, Sawyer & Collins.
The Association of Gaming Equipment Manufacturers, however, did not introduce an amendment as was expected. The group was seeking clearance to offer Internet games in direct competition with resort hotels, which under the terms of the bill, are the only businesses that would be licensed.
Monday is also the day that will show just how serious legislators are about Internet gambling. If AB296 sails through the day's work session, then it's likely that voting on the bill would mirror the Assembly's positive attitude toward the bill. Then Nevada would become the first U.S. state to legalize interactive casino gambling.