For the past year, there has been a great deal of discussion regarding the gaming laws in the state of Florida. Governor Rick Scott has been in deep negotiations with the Seminole Indian tribes regarding some changes that the state would like to make in the bylaws and agreements between the two entities. If this new legislation in the state of Florida is passed, however, the state’s horse racing industry – which is linked heavily to the state’s live poker room industry – is fearful that those new laws would hurt their industry in particular while potentially aiding other outlets.
According to the Ocala Star Banner’s Carlos Medina, a meeting of the Florida Thoroughbred Breeders’ and Owners’ Association on Friday touched on the subject of having poker rooms linked to racetracks around the Sunshine State. Under the current regulations in Florida, poker rooms for the most part are linked to horse and dog racing tracks or to other sporting outlets such as jai alai. The discussion regarding removing the legal requirement of having a racing schedule or match dates to be eligible to have poker rooms isn’t a new approach, but it is gaining some traction this year because of the discussions regarding gaming in the state.
Simply put, if the racetracks and jai alai frontons are allowed to have live poker without the necessity of having to conduct a race schedule a certain number or days out of the year or put on a jai alai contest, then the horse racing industry fears that most will not run a full schedule of races – potentially wouldn’t run races at all – if they could keep running their lucrative card rooms.
The negotiations between Scott and the Seminoles has reached a logjam, according to Medina, which means that all potential gaming options are on the table including the separation of card rooms and racetracks. Under the previous agreement, the Seminoles contributed $400 million per year to keep other outlets from being able to offer Las Vegas-style gaming on their properties. If the Florida legislature were to allow for other areas of the state to operate those games such as blackjack or slots, then the state would lose out on a healthy portion of that yearly payout from the Seminoles.
Medina mentions that, if Scott and the Seminole Indians are able to reach an agreement, it would still have to be passed through the Florida legislature. This is where things would become a bit problematic because, as Medina says, the entirety of Florida’s gaming industry would then be under a microscope for change. The legislature could just as easily make the change in the current laws regarding race tracks and poker as it could simply pass the Scott/Seminole agreement through the body without any discussion.
The lobbyist for the thoroughbred group doesn’t see this happening, however. “The Legislature is not in a position to pass the bill as a standalone,” Matt Bryant, the FTBOA’s lobbyist, stated to Medina. “Once the pari-mutuel and gaming issues get involved, that’s when all the permutations come into play.” If the issue regarding the race tracks operating the poker rooms is a sticking point in the negotiations between Scott and the Seminoles, the legislature could very well repeal the law currently on the books.
“Decoupling is first, foremost and everything. That will be our really strong focus. We’ll be dealing with this issue, in all likelihood, the whole session,” Lonny Powell, FTBOA CEO and executive vice president, is quoted by Medina.
Poker has enjoyed a booming business since previous laws barring no limit games and betting limits were repealed in 2010. In response to those changes, many of the top tournament circuits, including the World Poker Tour and the World Series of Poker Circuit (among others) began to hold major tournaments in the Sunshine State. What effect any changes to the laws regarding poker in the state of Florida would have are unknown, but apparently those in the horse racing industry are keen to keep the current rules intact to preserve their livelihoods.
