Arizona Online Gambling Laws
Arizona Online Gambling Laws Arizona is more gambling friendly than some other states in the US, with nearly 30 Class II and Class III tribal casinos operating within its borders. There are also markets for a state lottery, charitable gambling, horse racing betting, bingo, and more. There is no legal way for Arizona residents to bet on sports online in their home state. Based on the bills that have been filed for sports betting over the past two years, online sports betting may not be legal in Arizona for some time. None of the bills filed allowed for legal online sports betting. But when it comes to online gambling in Arizona, you may be a bit fuzzy. No, there isn’t any regulated online gambling in Arizona offered by in-state providers. The casinos are strictly brick and mortar, and not virtual. Lottery sales are also strictly in-person, at least for now.
- Us Online Gambling Laws
- Arizona Online Gambling Laws Against
- Is It Legal To Gamble Online In Arizona
- Is Online Gambling Illegal In Arizona
It’s fair to say Arizona is a super-exciting place when it comes to gambling. Considering the state’s proximity to Nevada, it is by no means surprising to know that gambling is one of the Arizonans’ most favorite pastimes. Nevertheless, if we move on to talk about the laws, things suddenly become tricky and much more complicated.
Online gambling is still out
In theory, the state has strict laws that have not changed at all since the 1900s in terms of gambling. The Grand Canyon State has always intended to allow its residents to gamble because that’s what most Arizonans would have done anyway. The permissions have always been, however, limited to land-based casinos exclusively. Despite several strong attempts of legalizing online gambling, especially in early 2019 and 2020, Arizona’s gambling laws do not address online gambling. Residents have no state-sanctioned or regulated online casinos inside state lines to play.
In short, online gambling is still illegal under state law and the players will have to wait to get in a position to enjoy playing online blackjack, roulette, poker, baccarat, and sports betting (among other forms) legally from the comfort of their homes. The reality is somewhat different given everything mentioned above up for grabs for the bettors who can use off-shore online casinos to spin the reels or hit the blackjack tables.
Native American-run casinos
While the situation with online gambling is shady, the Arizonans are actually spoilt for choice when it comes to physical casino possibilities. Slots, poker, and all kinds of different table games are within easy reach across one of 24 casinos run by Native Americans (the state has more Native American land than any other US territory). The future of online gambling may well be in hands of such casinos whose efforts of moving the businesses online have the potential of encouraging lawmakers to react.
Sports betting bills
We’ve witnessed two attempts of introducing sports betting to the state in 2019 and 2020 respectively. Although this year’s push as somewhat stronger with two bills (one from Senate, the other from the House), neither has been taken into consideration yet. Based on this experience, we have reasons to stay pessimistic in regards to the online gambling legalization in the years to come.
Social gambling is permitted
For now, what the Arizonans can do is social gambling. It is the form of gambling where bettors compete with each other on completely equal terms, without any sort of house edge or rake. The benefit of such gambling has to be exclusively limited to money wagered.
Conclusion
To sum it all up, you can place any type of wager you wish as long as you are physically in the state, at brick and mortar casinos owned by Native Americans. Unfortunately, not even a single form of online gambling is permitted. The fans of casino games, sports betting, poker, and lottery are all in the same situation. While many other states made moves to react and adapt to the changes to the federal laws in terms of online gambling, based on everything written above we sincerely doubt Arizona will do so in the near future.
We can regard it as a sad scenario knowing Arizonans have the luxury of accessing more land-based casinos than most other states in the country. There are no adjustments to the legislation even on a horizon for now. If there were to be any, the Compacts would most likely allow only Native-American run casinos to host online services. We’ll keep tracking the situation and inform you as soon as we get any signs of improvements on the matter.
Of the many numerous images that are evocative of the history of the Old West, those of hardscrabble miners, nefarious lawmen, and inveterate gamblers crowded around a gaming table in a boisterous saloon is one of the most poignant. Towns with names like Abilene, Kansas, Deadwood, South Dakota, and Pikes Peak, Colorado fill the pages of history books and the imaginations of generations of Americans.
Perhaps the most famous of these towns on the American frontier however, is Tombstone, Arizona. Made famous in legend and lore, the town's reputation for incorrigible behavior threatened to torpedo the 1912 admission of The Grand Canyon State as the final 'Lower 48' in the Union before the state's Founding Fathers agreed to shutter the offending casinos.
Arizona Gambling Laws
In keeping with their commitment to ban gambling from their borders, Arizona legislators have adopted a strict approach to their enforcement of gaming laws within the state, and they have embraced one of the broadest definition of what encompasses gambling.
Conversely, the state also supports a host of regulated gambling endeavors including nearly two dozen tribal casinos dotted around the state, social gambling, horse racing, and charitable gambling. As with most states, social gambling in Arizona is defined in a typical manner. To wit, in a social gambling situation, 'no person should benefit from operation of the game, and all players must enjoy equal standing under the rules and structure of the game.
Under Section 13-3301 of the Arizona criminal code, gambling is defined, in part, as 'Gambling' or 'Gamble' means one act of risking or giving something of value for the opportunity to obtain benefit from a game or contest of chance or skill, or a future contingent event.'
What sets this Arizona statute apart from just about every other state in the nation is its prohibition against games of 'skills' in addition to games of pure 'chance.'
Owing to these strictures against games of 'skill,' poker would most certainly fall outside the realm of legality unless played through one of the state's regulated gaming markets listed above. While the legislation neither addresses live poker nor online poker specifically, the prohibitions against games of 'skill' certainly would include both forms of gaming entertainment, but players are not legally challenged with an arrest, while bookies and gambling operators are occasionally targeted when law enforcement officials receive specific complaints of abuse.
Is Online Poker Legal in Arizona?
Like many jurisdictions, The Grand Canyon State's legal code is outdated relative to the fast advances of online gaming in the last decade, which allows room for interpretation when testing the laws against new online gaming platforms.
Most assuredly, Arizona's gaming community is bustling. With more than three and half million people over the age of 21 calling Arizona home, industry experts estimate that ten percent, or 350,000, are keen to play poker in the hot Arizona desert. For those on the state's borders, due south leads to gaming options below the United States-Mexican border, while a trip northward brings residents to the gaming tables of Las Vegas.
As mentioned, the state also sports a thriving Indian gaming industry with twenty-two casinos in operation across the state, and sixteen of those feature live poker rooms that rival the best gaming options on the Las Vegas famous Strip. While the rise of tribal gaming in the 1990s sparked a myriad of legal challenges that rocked the Arizona court system well into the next decade, but have now become a bastion of legal gaming for the avid players of The Grand Canyon State.
Still at issue, is the fate of online poker in the state. Arizona law stops the state, or any tribal organization, from establishing to conducting an online gaming presence under the provisions of Arizona Revised Statutes 5-501 (I) and 5-601.02. As such, poker aficionados can expect to see further courtroom battles.
While the legal prohibitions against gambling can easily be applied to online gaming, no specific Arizona law currently criminal online play specifically. To date, no record indicates that any individual online poker player has been prosecuted for playing.
Is it Illegal to Play Poker in Arizona?
Yes, it is illegal to pay online poker in Arizona under the broad interpretation of the word 'gambling' in the state. While no criminal statutes specifically mention either the internet or online gaming, the state has certainly outlawed the practice under the broadest understanding of their legal code.
Will Arizona Regulate Online Poker?
Us Online Gambling Laws
An open ended question, as mentioned, the state is still battling with tribal groups over their ability to establish and operate a legal online poker platform, so whether or not Arizona will be moving towards a regulation of online poker is difficult to judge. A silver lining for proponents of legal online poker is an exploration of the state's Social Gambling definition.
Arizona's stance, which indicates Social Gambling is expressly legal, one might theoretically operate a not-for-profit site that doesn't take a rake? One would also seem to think that the gamers is playing for entertainment rather than profit, which is perfectly legal under current Arizona law.
Arizona Online Gambling Laws Against
As legal gambling is the province of tribal areas within Arizona, many legal questions are yet to be addressed before a widespread acceptance of online poker play. Whereas state legislators seem conservatively opposed to an expansion of online gaming options, specifically if it means adhering to a federal mandate, the body might need to be pushed through a popular referendum of the citizenry.
History of Gambling in Arizona
Gambling was synonymous with the old west, and Arizona's frontier history was no exception. In a bid to secure statehood in 1912, the territory outlawed all forms of gambling, which was in line with early 20h-century sensibilities during the height of the Progressive Era.
Such was the state of gaming affairs in Arizona for the next seven decades when state legislators voted in 1980 to participate in a state lottery system. Today, the state is part of the multi-state lottery Association with such draw games as Fantasy 5, Powerball, The Pick, as well as a myriad of instant scratch tickets.
Eight years later, tribal casinos were legalized, which launched a decade of legal challenges that have finally subsided, but future battles loom on the horizon concerning what, if any role these tribal organizations will have in the creation and operation of online poker rooms.
Is It Legal To Gamble Online In Arizona
Reviving a frontier tradition centered on horse racing was the impetus for the 1992 passage of legalized horse racing in the state. Currently, people who like to 'play the ponies' have three legal race tracks to ply their particular skill set.