North Carolina Governor Debates Legalizing Video Poker

In Raleigh, North Carolina Governor Beverly Perdue recently signed a bill into law that bans video sweepstakes games in the state, saying that any legal gambling market must be uniformly regulated.

In a twist of events, a spokesperson for the Governor said that Perdue is open to looking at legislation that would allow video gaming to be legal in the state. These comments have reopened the debate on poker playing.

In 2006 the General Assembly of North Carolina banned video poker even though more than 900 internet cafes have started offering sweepstakes style games over the last two years. The video games are similar to casino games but do not offer cash prizes, only a chance to win a sweepstakes prize. Two district judges have said that offering prizes in that way is legal under the current state laws.

The North Carolina Education Lottery recently reported that legalizing poker could generate more that $575 million annually in taxes. That money would come in quite handy since the state is facing a $3 Billion budget deficit in the next year.

News Added: 03 August, 2010

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