Is Online Poker Legal Kentucky

1. Is Online Poker Legal In Kentucky
2. Online Poker Legal California
3. Is Online Poker Legal In Kentucky
4. Best Legal Online Poker Sites

Legal Online Poker in Kentucky. While the above definition suggests that any element of chance triggers a act of gambling, recent opinions from the Kentucky Attorney General conclude that Kentucky law actually employs the Dominant Factor Test to determine whether a game is one of chance or of skill.

30-second summary

• Kentucky historically has only supported gambling on horse races
• No casinos are operating in the state
• A new bill would legalize sports betting and online poker
• There is significant support for sports betting, but online poker could be a tricky sell

Kentucky’s historical gambling stance

Kentucky has always been very strict when it comes to its gambling policies. The only exception to this is Kentuckians’ love for horse racing. It is one of the leading states for both breeding and racing horses.

The state lottery has been in operation since 1988. Kentucky residents can also take part in multi-state lottery offerings such as Mega Millions. In the past few years, citizens have been able to buy these lottery tickets online. Non-profits are allowed to hold raffles and bingo to raise funds.

There are no casinos in the state, which means that a lot of residents travel to other states to play their favorite casino games. Bills to make casinos legal were considered in both 2010 and 2012 to try, but they were met with heavy resistance.

The legislature did not want to put revenue coming from the horse racing industry in jeopardy by opening up casinos. Seven racetracks operate in Kentucky. The Churchill Downs racetrack is well known globally because it plays hosts the Kentucky Derby annually.

These tracks take in about $840m (£651m) each year. Of this, about $310m (£240m) goes to the government in taxes. The racetracks have gaming machines on their premises to help boost their revenues and allow them to stay in operation.

The owners of Churchill Downs are keen to see legal sports betting. They recently invested in casinos in Mississippi and Pennsylvania in anticipation of sports betting legalization.

Potential sports betting legalization

Since a Supreme Court decision ended the federal ban on sports betting in May 2018, Kentucky has been considering legalizing sports betting. Some neighboring states are close to opening sportsbooks or have bills in the works, so the state doesn’t want to fall behind. A couple of sports betting bills have been put before the Kentucky legislature.

The latest, House Bill 175, was introduced by State Representative Adam Koenig. It includes provisions to allow both daily fantasy sports and online poker. Koenig says that it has more support than any other bill he has filed.

With sports betting being a massive black market activity, it makes sense for Kentucky to just legalize it. This will allow the state to benefit from reducing financing to criminal groups, as well as using tax revenue for good causes. There is bipartisan support for sports betting in Kentucky.

Funds needed

House Bill 175 would allow existing racetracks and sporting venues in the state to get sports betting licenses. Online sportsbooks would also be permitted. However, a prospective bettor would need to open the account in person at one of the respective venues before being able to play online.

The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission would be in charge of regulating sports betting. Each of the licenses would carry a $1m (£780,000) fee. There would be a 10.25% tax for bets placed at physical locations, while online sports bets would be subject to a 14.25% tax.

The state currently is in the midst of a serious pension deficit. It faces a shortage of almost $33bn (£25.6bn) for retired public workers in the next three decades. Therefore, the state is looking closely at ways in which they can generate new revenue streams.

House Bill 175 would also legalize online poker, but many believe that could be a step too far for many lawmakers.

Kentucky has a hostile relationship with online poker, having filed numerous lawsuits against online poker companies in the past. In 2015, a court ruled that PokerStars owes the state $870m (£674.3m). That’s the amount that residents of the state supposedly lost between 2006 and 2011 when the activity was not legal. Eventually, this fine was dismissed by a judge who said that the ruling was “absurd and unjust.”

As part of this bill, the Kentucky Lottery would be in charge of regulating the online poker sector. There would be a limit on how much one can wager on a given game. There would be an age limit of 18 years or older to use these platforms.

A 6.75% tax would be imposed on online net poker revenue. The current legislative session ends on March 29 and there is hope that significant progress can be made on these issues in the meantime.

• Year Kentucky Regulated Gambling: Horseracing (1783), Lottery (1988), Historical Racing (2010)
• Estimated Tax Revenue from Gambling: unknown
• Estimated Gambling Revenue: unknown
• Kentucky Gambling Age: 18
• Smoking ban: Kentucky does not have a smoking ban
• Kentucky Online gambling: Off-track betting

Kentucky is considered the home of horse racing in the U.S. The Kentucky Derby, one of the best-known horse races in the world, is hosted at Churchill Downs in the state. Kentucky was home to the first known horse race in the country in 1783. The state has always accepted that its residents and tourists visit Bluegrass Country to take in the races and wager a few dollars.

While gambling on horses has always been embraced, it has not been quick to expand into Kentucky casinos. There is a state lottery in Kentucky. Instant racing, which are slot machines that display winning symbols based on past races, started appearing at racetracks earlier this decade. Kentucky racetracks may also offer off-track betting. Charities can offer games of chance with limited prizes and a number of events.

Paying Gambling Taxes in Kentucky

Find out how you can report your gambling income to the IRS with our in-depth Gambling Taxes Guide. Learn which forms you have to fill out, how to report your winnings, as well as deduct losses.

Is Online Poker Legal In Kentucky

Kentucky Casinos Map & Guide of Racetracks

• Ellis Park – Henderson
• Red Mile – Lexington

• Number of B&M Casinos: 0
• Number of Poker Rooms: 0
• Number of Indian Casinos: 0

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Types of Kentucky Online Gambling

The only form of legal Kentucky online gambling is off-track betting on horses. These wagers may be placed on websites and apps belonging to companies like TVG, Twinspires, and BetAmerica. TwinSpires is based in Kentucky. It is owned by Churchill Downs.

Daily fantasy sites claim legality under Kentucky’s skill gaming laws. While the state attorney general and its legislature have not addressed daily fantasy sports, some sour gamblers have filed lawsuits against the companies in an attempt to recover losses through qui tam laws. These cases are still in the court system.

Online poker, casino, and sports betting sites are not legal in Kentucky. The state has filed its own qui tam lawsuits to recover losses for the state’s residents. One judgment against PokerStars compelled the site to pay Kentucky $870 million. That case is under appeal. The state also filed a lawsuit in an attempt to seize 141 domain names from gambling sites.

Types of Live Kentucky Gambling

• Slots: No
• Blackjack: No
• Poker: No
• Craps/Roulette: No
• Horses: Yes
• Lottery: Yes

There are three types of live Kentucky gambling available to residents. A state lottery sells scratch-off and lotto tickets. This includes interstate drawings. Popular games include Lucky for Life, Pick 3, Pick 4, 5 Card Cash, Powerball, and Mega Millions.

There are six Kentucky racetracks. All offer horse tracks. Greyhound racing is not legal in Kentucky. All six tracks offer off-track betting on horses.

Kentucky Downs, Ellis Park, and Red Mile offer a controversial form of gambling that is working its way through the court system. These two tracks offer instant racing machines. These devices are programmed with thousands of past horse races. Players put cash into the machine and make a wager. The machine pulls one of these historical races and displays the reels on the device to match a payout similar to what the event would have paid. These are described as historical racing machines. Some consider them to be slot machines because that is exactly how they look and feel. The only difference is how the position of the reels is determined.

There are currently no Kentucky casinos operating at the moment. There is legislation that racetracks are trying to pass so that they can legally offer more popular electronic casino games, like electronic blackjack and roulette. We may see the racetracks and Kentucky casinos legislation combine and form “racinos” that are already popular in other states.

Kentucky Gambling Laws

Kentucky gambling laws define gambling as,

“staking or risking something of value on the outcome of a contest, game, gaming scheme, or gaming device which is based upon an element of chance, in accord with an agreement or understanding that someone will receive something of value in the event of a certain outcome.”

It only exempts the state lottery, horse racing and arguably, instant racing machines. Charities may operate bingo games and raffles.

Promoting gambling is a Class A misdemeanor or Class D felony, depending on the charges. The minimum gambling age in Kentucky is 18 years for lottery, racing, and instant racing bettors.

Where to Gamble in Kentucky

There are more than 1,000 lottery retailers in Kentucky. There are also dozens of charitable organizations that offer bingo and similar games to raise funds for nonprofit operations.

Outside of these options, there are only six Kentucky racetracks to gamble at. You might consider these racetracks to be Kentucky casinos, as they already have permission to offer racing machines, which are very similar to slot machines. This may be the start of new Kentucky gambling legislation.

You can look for the specific racetrack you want to wager at on our Kentucky casinos map and guide located above.

History of Kentucky Gambling

Horse racing dates back to 1783 in Kentucky. That is nine years before it became a state. The first organized racing venue was created in Louisville. It was called Elm Tree Gardens. Racing spread to Lexington in 1787 where horses competed in The Commons. Churchill Downs, home of the Kentucky Derby, opened in 1883.

Kentucky did not regulate horse racing like it does today in its early years. It was simply impossible to control pari-mutuel pools and organize the tracks and horses centuries ago. It took until the early 1900’s for the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission to be created. Tracks have come and gone over the years. There are five in operation today. This makes Kentucky one of the most thriving states when it comes to horseracing.

The first legal lottery in Kentucky was held in 1792. It occurred in an attempt to fundraise for a church in Lexington. The Kentucky Lottery that exists today was created through a November 1988 constitutional referendum. The first ticket was sold in April 1989. The Kentucky Lottery sells scratch-off and lotto tickets.

The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission modified its regulations to permit instant racing machines in 2010. These games mimic slot machines. The devices display slot symbols in a pattern to show the payout of a horse race based in the past. The exact race is never known. The Kentucky Supreme Court ruled that the racing commission had the authority to legalize these games. Anti-gambling groups are still fighting instant racing in the courts. Kentucky Downs, Ellis Park, and Red Mile offer instant racing, and can be considered to be the only Kentucky casinos operating today.

Kentucky has been the home of two disputes with offshore online gambling sites. In 2008, Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear’s office initiated a lawsuit in an attempt to seize 141 domain names related to gambling. Major sites were included in the list. Big names like PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker, Absolute Poker, DoylesRoom and Cake Poker were among them. The case dragged out until 2014 when a state appeals court essentially quashed it. This case was the beginning of offshore gaming sites moving to domains that do not use the .com extension. Kentucky received a small settlement related to Black Friday due to this case before it ultimately failed.

Kentucky is also the venue where PokerStars was sued for $290 million for accepting players in the state. Government officials alleged that PokerStars operated illegally and should be compelled to pay the state for its residents’ gambling losses under qui tam laws. The alleged events occurred from 2006 to 2011.

These loss recovery laws permit anybody to recover illegal gambling losses if the loser does not act within six months. A lower court awarded the $290 million as well as treble damages, making the total judgment $870 million. The case is currently under appeal

PokerStars was owned by Rational Group at the time the lawsuit is based. It has since been acquired by Amaya Gaming. The new owners of PokerStars have vowed to fight the case or pursue the former owners if it ultimately loses the legal battle.

Kentucky Casinos & Gambling FAQ

Yes. Kentucky is considered the home of the horse racing industry in the country.

Yes. There are six race books in Kentucky.

The only form of online betting legal in Kentucky is off-track horse racing.

No, only horse racing.

No, the closest thing to casinos in the state is instant racing machines. There are casinos in West Virginia, Ohio, Indiana and Illinois.

The minimum Kentucky gambling age is 18 years for all legal forms of gambling, including lottery and racing bets.

Yes, the Kentucky Lottery sells scratch-off and lotto tickets.

Lottery sales are not permitted over the Internet.

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None of these types of websites are licensed to operate in Kentucky.

Is Online Poker Legal In Kentucky

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There is currently a court battle over alleged illegal online gambling where a lower court ruled PokerStars owes Kentucky $870 million. It is currently under appeal.