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Panel says online gambling could soon be coming to New York, Maryland, and possibly California

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Panel says online gambling could soon be coming to New York, Maryland, and possibly California

With Rhode Island this week becoming the seventh U.S. state to launch internet gambling, industry panelists at an online gambling conference predicted Wednesday that several additional states would join the fray in the next few years.

Speaking at the Next.io forum on internet gambling and sports betting, several mentioned New York and Maryland as likely candidates to start offering internet casino games soon.

WILL ONLINE GAMBLING SPREAD BEYOND THESE SIX STATES, OR IS IT JUST A FAD?

And some noted that, despite years of difficulty crafting a deal that satisfies commercial and tribal casinos and card rooms, California is simply too big a market not to offer internet gambling.

“Some of the dream is not quite fulfilled, which creates some opportunity,” said Rob Heller, CEO of Spectrum Gaming Capital.

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Before Rhode Island went live with online casino games on Tuesday, only six U.S. states offered them: New Jersey, Connecticut, Delaware, Pennsylvania, Michigan and West Virginia. Nevada offers internet poker but not online casino games.

Elaine Vallaster plays an online slots game on her tablet in Hazlet, N.J. on November 24, 2023.  (AP Photo/Wayne Parry)

Shawn Fluharty, a West Virginia state delegate and chairman of a national group of legislators from gambling states, listed New York and Maryland as the most likely states to add internet gambling soon.

He was joined in that assessment by Brandt Iden, vice president of government affairs for Fanatics Betting and Gaming and a former Michigan state representative.

Both men acknowledged the difficulty of passing online casino legislation; Thirty-eight states plus Washington, D.C., currently offer sports betting, compared to seven with internet casino gambling.

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Part of the problem is that some lawmakers are unfamiliar with the industry, Iden said.

“We talk about i-gaming, and they think we’re talking about video games,” he said.

Fluharty added he has “colleagues who struggle to silence their phones, and we’re going to tell them gambling can be done on their phones?”

Some lawmakers fear that offering online casino games will cannibalize revenue from existing brick-and-mortar casinos, although industry executives say online gambling can complement in-person gambling. Fluharty said four casinos opened in Pennsylvania after the state began offering internet casino gambling.

AI-DRIVEN TECHNOLOGY TO REVOLUTIONIZE SPORTS BETTING VIA PERSONALIZED EXPERIENCES BASED ON PATTERNS, INTERESTS

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A study commissioned by Maryland projected that adding internet gambling would generate $900 million in annual online betting revenue by 2029, but that it would cost brick-and-mortar casinos $200 million.

The key to wider adoption of internet gambling is playing up the tax revenue it generates, and emphasizing programs to discourage compulsive gambling and help those with a problem, panelists said. New York state senator Joseph Addabbo, one of the leading advocates of online betting in his state, recently introduced legislation to allocate at least $6 million a year to problem gambling programs.

“If you tell them we’re funding things by passing i-gaming, or we can raise your taxes, what do you think the answer is going to be?” Fluharty asked, citing college scholarships as something for which gambling revenue could be used.

One bill pending in the Maryland state legislature that would legalize internet gambling would impose a lower tax rate on operations that offer live dealer casino games and thus create additional jobs.

New York lawmakers have made a strong push for internet gambling in recent years, but Gov. Kathy Hochul did not include it in her executive budget proposal this year.

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Edward King, co-founding partner of Acies Investments, said California — where disputes among tribal and commercial gambling operations have stalled approval of online casino games and sports betting — will likely join the fray.

“It’s an inevitability for a state the size of California,” he said. “The tax dollars are too big.”

Adam Greenblatt, CEO of BetMGM, disagreed, saying California likely won’t approve online gambling anytime soon, and that Texas, another potentially lucrative market, “has successfully resisted it for 20 years.”

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Washington

Algae-filled Washington pool to be drained for repairs after US$14.7 million renovation

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Algae-filled Washington pool to be drained for repairs after US.7 million renovation


The Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool on Washington’s National Mall is set to be drained again for repairs after algae and peeling paint appeared just weeks after a US$14.7 million renovation, while President Donald Trump threatened prison time for anyone caught ‌damaging the pool.

The DC Water authority issued a permit to drain the 609-metre rectangular pool, it said on Monday, while the repair company said it would fix the pool as part of its warranty.

Peeling paint and algae growth have been visible in the pool since soon after Trump declared the renovation project complete on June 6. Critics have raised concerns about the no-bid contract to recoat the pool before the ⁠nation’s 250th anniversary celebrations next month, as well as for the ducks that use its water. Workers from the National Park Service earlier this ‌week poured hydrogen peroxide into the pool to combat the algae.

Trump, without evidence, has blamed vandals for the state of the landmark. On Monday, he echoed a weekend threat ‌by US Attorney Jeanine Pirro to prosecute people accused of attempting to destroy the pool.

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“Please remember that there is ⁠a 10-year prison sentence for the ⁠destruction, or even the attempted destruction, of such things – Which will be fully enforced!” Trump earlier wrote in a social media post. Destruction of federal property can ‌carry a maximum prison sentence of 10 years.

It was not immediately apparent what criminal or civil violation someone might commit reaching into the pool.



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Wyoming

New Department of Family Services summer food program launches in Wyoming

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New Department of Family Services summer food program launches in Wyoming


CHEYENNE, Wyo. — The Wyoming Department of Family Services recently announced that it will be launching a federal program this week to provide grocery assistance to more than 37,000 school-aged children across the state.

Known as SUN Bucks, the initiative provides a one-time $120 benefit per eligible child to help families cover food costs during the summer months, the department announced in a release. Gov. Mark Gordon previously authorized the program’s implementation through an executive order on April 15.

Gordon described the initiative as an essential tool to support children who may otherwise lack access to healthy food while school is out of session.

“We want our children to thrive, because when our children are successful, so too are our communities,” he stated in the release.

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According to DFS, most qualifying children will be automatically enrolled in the program. The department reports that it began sending eligibility notifications this week via mail and email.

Eligible families can expect to receive SUN Bucks electronic benefit transfer cards in the mail starting in early July.

DFS Director Korin Schmidt said in a statement that the program is specifically designed to assist rural children who lose access to school-provided breakfast and lunch during the summer months, adding that the benefits will allow families to purchase groceries as needed to ensure food is available in the home for those missed meals.

The SUN Bucks cards will function similarly to other benefit programs and be accepted at any retailer participating in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

While tens of thousands of children are enrolled automatically, some eligible families may still need to apply, according to the press release. Residents can check their child’s enrollment status or submit an application through the DFS SUN Bucks website starting June 22.

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For more information, people can visit the DFS website, email ask-sunbucks@wyo.gov or call 307-777-8786 between 8:15 a.m. and 4:45 p.m. Monday through Friday.





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San Francisco, CA

San Francisco home with a history of squatters hits the market for $1.3 million

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San Francisco home with a history of squatters hits the market for .3 million


An abandoned house near San Francisco’s Castro neighborhood that has been popular with squatters for years is now for sale.

On Yukon Street at the edge of Kite Hill in the Eureka Valley neighborhood, the house with arched windows over the garage, including one that’s broken, is listed for $1.3 million.

Listing agent Zara Rowbotham and her brother, James, put together a promotional video highlighting the home’s fixer-upper potential.

There is no running water or power at the house. Neighbors have reported to the city that squatters relieve themselves at the top floor atrium.

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“They needed a place to do it, so they had the nice manners to do it in one basket,” Rowbotham said. “Unfortunately it was an outside basket right in front of one of the neighbors’ houses.”

With the nature of San Francisco’s red-hot housing market, Rowbothom said they already have a potential buyer.

Rowbothom added the city is swirling with money right now and there are few places to buy, so properties like the one on Yukon Street – even with a history of squatters – are being snapped up quickly. Rowbothom said they’re going for millions of dollars, with people paying cash a lot of the time.



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