Online Gambling In Washington State Reddit

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Washington state Rep. Derek Stanford, the Democratic chairman of a committee overseeing gambling activity, said he thinks the state is not ready for sports betting, and that's a reason none of the. Legal Washington Sports Betting. On March 25, 2020, Washington passed ESHB 2638 to legalize sports betting at the state’s tribal casinos. The decision was surprising, as Washington has historically had some of the stricter sports gambling laws in the country, and many expected that the bill would be tabled until at least 2021 while lawmakers addressed the COVID-19 pandemic.

We've compiled this legal online betting guide for US players arranged by state, to provide accurate and up to date information on the legal online gambling status and gaming options available within each US state. Our goal is to provide a comprehensive state gambling directory which will empower players with the information to make informed decisions about online gambling.

This state-specific data will include a look at the state laws governing online gambling opportunities from online casinos, online poker, to online sports betting.

Each individual state is approaching the legalization of online gambling differently, thus it is necessary to detail lawfully available state-licensed options, and sanctioned licensed offshore online gambling opportunities. We also address some of the most commonly asked questions about gambling in each state and provide some helpful resources for players to access. This information can only be covered in depth within each of the state pages we offer, which you can find listed within this guide.

Is Online Gambling Legal In My State?

To avoid confusion, we have marked US states which offer state-regulated gambling options in the table below with a check mark. At this moment in time, eight US states have legalized and regulated online gambling in some form. For example:

Online Poker & Casinos:

  • Delaware - Online Poker and Online Casino gambling
  • Nevada - Online Poker
  • New Jersey - Online Poker, Online Casinos
  • Pennsylvania - Online Poker, Online Casinos
  • West Virginia - Online Poker, Online Casinos

Online Sports Betting & Fantasy Sports

  • Illinois - Legalized Online Sports Betting**
  • Indiana - Offers Online Sports Betting
  • Iowa - Offers Online Sports Betting
  • Massachusetts - Fantasy Sports Allowed
  • Mississippi - Online Allowed At Casinos Only
  • Montana - Legalized Online Sports Betting**
  • Nevada - Online Sportsbooks State-wide
  • New Jersey - Online Sportsbooks State-wide
  • New York - Allows Fantasy Sports And Domestic Sports Betting
  • Oregon - Offers Online Sports Betting
  • Pennsylvania - Offers Online and Domestic Sports Betting
  • Rhode Island - Offers Online and Domestic Sports Betting
  • Tennessee - Offers Online Sports Betting Apps
  • West Virginia - Online Sports Betting Allowed State-wide

** Legalized but Pending launch

Online Lottery:

  • Georgia - Online Lottery Allowed
  • Illinois - Online Lottery Allowed
  • Kentucky - Online Lottery Allowed
  • Michigan - Online Lottery Allowed
  • Minnesota - Online Lottery Allowed
  • New Hampshire - Online Lottery Allowed
  • Pennsylvania - Online Lottery Allowed

Is Licensed Offshore Gambling Legal In My State?

While the above-mentioned states offer regulated online gambling, they still maintain the option to utilize licensed offshore online options. Nearly all US state residents, except those from Washington or Connecticut, can legally access licensed offshore online gambling platforms to play online casino games, poker, or bet on sports.

This is because no state laws in these other 48 states specifically prohibit or allow it - thus operating in a technical grey area, it is still considered safe to use because it is not likely these states will draft and pass legislation to specifically affect domestic access to licensed offshore gaming.

What Is The Minimum Online Gambling Age in the US?

There is no one minimum gambling age in the US as this is set and regulated by each individual state. The minimum gambling age within each state is affected by various factors such as game selected and licensor. By this, we mean state-regulated online gambling options require domestic players, whether residents or visitors, to abide by the state's minimum gambling age for that form of gambling on land within the state's borders.

However, licensed offshore online platforms which offer casino games, poker, and sports betting can lawfully accept players who are at least 18 years of age or older. These licensed offshore online sites also offer players much more in the way of bonuses and perks and the platforms we recommend are all extremely reputable.

U.S. States Where You Can Legally Gamble At 18 And Up

Below you can learn more about the minimum legal online gambling age by state in the USA.

AL Offshore Yes:18IL Offshore Yes:18NE Offshore Yes:18SD Offshore Yes:18
AK Offshore Yes:18IN Offshore Yes:18NV Offshore Yes:18SC Offshore Yes:18
AZ Offshore Yes:18KS Offshore Yes:18NH Offshore Yes:18TN Offshore Yes:18
AR Offshore Yes:18KY Offshore Yes:18NJ Offshore NoTX Offshore Yes:18
CA Offshore Yes:18LA Offshore Yes:18NM Offshore Yes:18UT Offshore Yes:18
CO Offshore Yes:18ME Offshore Yes:18NY Offshore Yes:18VT Offshore Yes:18
CT Offshore NoMD Offshore Yes:18ND Offshore Yes:18VA Offshore Yes:18
DE Offshore Yes:18MA Offshore Yes:18NC Offshore Yes:18WA Offshore No
FL Offshore Yes:18MI Offshore Yes:18OH Offshore Yes:18WV Offshore Yes:18
GA Offshore Yes:18MN Offshore Yes:18OK Offshore Yes:18WI Offshore Yes:18
HI Offshore Yes:18MS Offshore Yes:18OR Offshore Yes:18WY Offshore Yes:18
ID Offshore Yes:18MO Offshore Yes:18PA Offshore Yes:18
IA Offshore Yes:18MT Offshore Yes:18RI Offshore Yes:18

Online Gambling Laws in The United States

Gambling laws can be a rather complex topic these days as there are several US federal gambling laws to account for such as the UIGEA, and the Federal Wire Act, as well as, several individual state gambling laws. The reason for this is because the United States DOJ has said that states have the authority to determine their own destiny concerning both land-based and online gambling.

Gambling

Afterward, several states moved forward with legalizing some forms of online gambling for their region. Multiple other states are currently in discussions amongst themselves regarding the possibility of embracing this virtual gaming platform in their own territories. As discussed earlier and from what can be read from our laws page, US players outside of WA and CT are permitted access to multiple licensed, certified, and regulated online gambling sites hosted outside of the United States. This is a nice alternative for those players not located in a state with its own regulated form of domestic online gambling.

States With Pending Online Gambling Legislation

US States That Offer Domestic Sportsbooks

US States With Passed Sports Betting Legislation (Pending Launch)

The regulations on US online gambling across the country have been through quite the hustle, with many interpretations on what is allowed and what is not, with states that have seen the opportunities that come along with a legal framework for Internet wagering and others that on account of their beliefs state against it. On that account, Washington online gambling is on the extreme side of restrictive actions taken against it. With a constant attitude against USA online casinos, Washington takes the battle to the next level, being one of the few states that have a clear specification that opposes Internet wagering.

Online Gambling In Washington State Reddit

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Online Gambling In Washington State Reddit Game


Contents

Overview on the Washington State’s Gambling Market

There are three main directions to take into consideration when speaking of betting in the state:

  • It takes one of the strongest anti-online gambling stances in the country, making it illegal for online gambling in Washington State, to be organized. Washington online poker has had some attempts at being regulated, but WA is far from becoming one of the legal online gambling sites.
  • The biggest off-line option for exerting betting are the tribal land based casinos, with more than 20 tribes running almost 30 casino businesses. The year 1999 has found these casinos on the upturn, after enabling them the use of slot machines, a move that gave them a clear advantage over their rivals: card rooms.
  • Early developed card rooms in which were, at first, allowed only non-banked games, but now get to offer poker, as well as blackjack. They have demanded the permit for slots machines being included in their offer, to compete with the tribal casinos, but were thus far denied all opportunities of doing so.

While further analyzing the current situation, it is easy to observe that while the tribal casinos have the largest spread, with the most options and gather the highest profit, somewhere around 2 billion dollars. But their paid taxes is zero, given the federal law protecting the Native-Americans and allowing them to use the amount that would’ve gone to the state’s income, for investments in the tribe’s needs. This means that the heavy burden of tax collecting falls on the shoulders of the lottery and the commercially owned card rooms. They total an amount of only 200 million dollars. Perhaps, under these conditions, by refusing to legalize online gambling, Washington denies itself an important means of income.

Land-based Casinos

Even before the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act came into effect, there was a lot of discussion on establishing the ground rules for legally wagering. First, the state constitution denied categorically all forms of gambling. Then, one by one, horse races were allowed and then bingo and raffles. When these were deemed unconstitutional, it was stipulated that a Gambling Commission had to be set in place, for it to regulate this particular domain. Thus, in 1971, the first “casino nights” were allowed, as a charitable event. This has been the first step towards gambling expansion, with card rooms following soon and finally the first agreement with an Indian tribe, for the opening of a stateside casino, all the way in 1992. With all of these measures put in motion, we would have expected that Washington state online gambling regulations would be a swift walk in the park, instead of the fierce struggle that this day presents.
But even these tribal casinos have a bit of a battle of their own. Recently, the Cowlitz tribe opened a state-of-the-art resort casino, near Portland, for a massive investment of over 500 million USD, containing a high number of slot machines, restaurants, and other facilities. However, regardless of all the excitement around this grand-opening, there were those who had nothing but to lose. The close-by establishment of the Grand Ronde tribe has blamed a loss of revenue of almost 40%. Taking into account the experience of this particular tribe, it’s hard to believe that many such tribes are going to welcome the US online gambling stage being expanded in this state.

Card Rooms

These establishments, have come into the public’s attention earlier on, in 1974 and represent the main competitor for tribal casinos, especially in the absence of any Washington online casino for real money sites. The state has a large number of poker rooms, more than many other states. But there aren’t any large card rooms. The highest number of poker tables in a single location is of 32. Most are grouped into bunches of 3-5 poker tables, usually hosted by bars.

Washington State Online Gambling

Based on causes that are currently eluding our understanding, the Gambling Commission has an unusually aggressive attitude against online gambling for Washington. This is among the few states that have specifically stated in its regulations a ban on Internet wagering activity. Besides the fact that the laws in the matter stipulate some of the fiercest punishments for illegal activities, the most interesting moment on this regard came in 2006, when lawmakers decided that felony charges can be pursued for those that use the Internet, among other means, to carry out any activity concerning gambling. Just to clarify the example, felony charges, in this case, can go up to 10000 USD fine, along with a maximum of 5 years imprisonment.
This being the case, it’s no wonder that no operator of online sports betting for Washington State wanted to take the chance and risk such penalties as are stated in the law. The same goes for any software provider or operator who wanted to base their business here and start some Washington online casinos.
Luckily for willing players, the changes in US online gambling regulations also affected the interpretations for the state law. After the rebuffing in 2011 of the Wire Act, all the restrictions and the rules mentioned before, only apply to operators and not to the average everyday player.

Legal Attempts

Not to understand from all stated above, that no attempts have been made to legalize some form of virtual betting. Following the trend of a much more relaxed view on online gambling in the US in general, several supporters have tried on different occasions to push a bill. Most debates have been around the legalization of online poker in Washington.
The most intense discussion happened in 2010, around the idea that residents had the right to play Internet poker and were not meant to become subject of a felony by doing this. This has seen the Supreme Court of Washington, which not only shut the idea down but even stated that it was among the state’s prerogatives to elaborate such punishments. The bills that followed didn’t get this much attention, often enough failing to receive even a hearing. What is indeed gratifying is that regardless of the hostility towards such a concept, the supporters of a bill that would legalize online poker aren’t yet giving up.

Reddit

Other options

Online Gambling In Washington State

Given the ever-changing stance against Washington online casinos and the apparent worsening of conditions, any online gambling US player is advised to constantly be up to date with the latest news on this subject. For the moment, the options of playing in online casinos refer exclusively to those websites that have their business based outside the state, mostly being licensed in different countries, like Curacao, Malta or Canada, to name a few. As is the best example of a renowned website Bovada Casino. Bovada is legal in Washington and is residents’ favourite online casino brand. Seeing how it is not based in the US, it can offer its gaming services to citizens of this specific state, without fear of repercussions both from the site’s point of view, as well as from its players.

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FAQ
Can I gamble online in WA?

There is no Washington online casino available. Only offshore-based websites, which need carefully reviewing before joining their games. Luckily there are some sites that do just that and playing on their recommendations, means not to worry about verifying licenses, security measures or authenticity.

Is online poker legal in Washington State?

No for the moment. Although online poker in Washington State has been constantly pushed for legalization, it was not a successful endeavor so far. The only remaining option is that of reviewed and verified websites from other jurisdictions.

What is the minimum legal gambling age in Washington?

The minimum classical gambling age applies to online gambling in Washington State, as well. Thus, although it’s been stated at 18, the recommendations are to align with the general US online gambling age of 21.

Online Gambling In Washington State Reddit State

How can you withdraw your winnings in Washington?

Given the restrictions of Washington online gambling, the rules that apply when withdrawing money are those set by the websites you play at. Check out the terms and conditions stated on the site. Any online casino accepting Washington players is going to demand a means of payment that includes extra verification, such as wire transfer. They need more days to be accomplished but are the safest way.

Online Gambling In Washington State Reddit Streams

How about future prospects on legislative relaxation on the online gambling domain?

Online Gambling Wa State

Online gambling Washington State law has had some bills being pushed for legalizing poker, without any real success. We can, therefore, assess that no online casino in Washington is to be seen anytime soon.

Additional Sources:

Online Gambling In Washington State Reddit Sites

https://www.wsgc.wa.gov/news/gambling-legislation-2019
http://mrsc.org/Home/Explore-Topics/Public-Safety/Licensing-and-Regulation/Gambling-in-Washington-State.aspx
https://www.jobmonkey.com/casino/washington/