FLORIDA POKER LEGISLATION BECOMES LAW BY DEFAULT

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Governor Charlie Crist fails to sign

Two months ago Florida state House and Senate lawmakers approved Bill 752 which permits casinos in the state to raise stakes offered in poker ring games and tournaments and allows more flexibility to operators. The bill went to the governor's office for consideration, but apparently Governor Charlie Crist declined to sign it.

State procedures require that the governor either sign a bill into law or exercise a veto, and if it remains unsigned without a veto a bill automatically passes into law after a designated period. And this is apparently what happened, according to a notice on the Florida House of Representatives website which informs the public that SB 752 "Became Law without Governor's Signature" this week and will come into effect on July 1.

Florida is a reasonably enlightened state where poker has been legal for some time, although with restricted betting limits. In 1996, legislation was passed allowing cardrooms to spread poker games with a $10 maximum pot per hand, and in 2003 new legislation was passed eliminating the $10-per-hand rule, but introducing a new maximum of $2 per betting round.

The new law allows single bet limits to be raised to $5, and permits no-limit Texas Hold'em games with a maximum buy-in of $100. Tournaments may be offered with increased buy-ins, and cardrooms have more latitude in scheduling hours of operation within a maximum of 12 hours action per day. Another liberating feature is that cardrooms associated with live racing are now allowed to open even when racing is not being offered.