PROPOSED RULES
Original Notice.
Preproposal statement of inquiry was filed as WSR 10-12-093.
Title of Rule and Other Identifying Information: WAC 230-15-189 House-banked and Class F card game licensee pilot program on wagering limits for Texas Hold'em poker.
Hearing Location(s): State Investment Board, 2100 Evergreen Park Drive S.W., Olympia, WA 98504, on September 9 or 10, 2010, at 9:00 a.m.
Date of Intended Adoption: September 9 or 10, 2010.
Submit Written Comments to: Susan Arland, P.O. Box 42400, Olympia, WA 98504-2400, e-mail SusanA@wsgc.wa.gov, fax (360) 486-3625, by September 1, 2010.
Assistance for Persons with Disabilities: Contact Gail Grate, executive assistant, by September 1, 2010, TTY (360) 486-3637 or (360) 486-3453.
Purpose of the Proposal and Its Anticipated Effects, Including Any Changes in Existing Rules: This filing would create a pilot program to test the regulatory and economic impacts of increasing the wager limits from $40 to $100 for Texas Hold'em poker at house-banked and Class F card rooms.
The pilot program will help determine whether there is a demand for higher wagering limits for Texas Hold'em poker. The pilot program will last eighteen months. House-banked and Class F card rooms that participate in the pilot program will document and retain certain information for evaluation at the end of the program. At the end of the pilot program, the commission will evaluate the information and determine whether a wager increase should be made permanent.
Reasons Supporting Proposal: See above.
Statutory Authority for Adoption: RCW 9.46.070.
Statute Being Implemented: Not applicable.
Rule is not necessitated by federal law, federal or state court decision.
Name of Proponent: Texas Hold'em Work Group, consisting of representatives from the gambling commission, the Recreational Gaming Association, the card room industry, and several other stakeholder groups, private and governmental.
Name of Agency Personnel Responsible for Drafting: Susan Arland, Rules Coordinator, Lacey, (360) 486-3466; Implementation: Rick Day, Director, Lacey, (360) 486-3446; and Enforcement: Mark Harris, Assistant Director, Lacey, (360) 486-3579.
No small business economic impact statement has been prepared under chapter 19.85 RCW. A small business economic impact statement was not prepared because the proposed rule change does not impose more than minor costs, as defined in chapter 19.85 RCW, to licensees.
A cost-benefit analysis is not required under RCW 34.05.328. The Washington state gambling commission is not an agency that is statutorily required to prepare a cost-benefit analysis under RCW 34.05.328.
July 19, 2010
Susan Arland
Rules Coordinator
OTS-3379.2
Alternative #2
NEW SECTION
WAC 230-15-189
House-banked and Class F card game
licensee pilot program on wagering limits for Texas Hold'em
poker.
The commission finds it to be in the public's interest
to conduct a pilot program to test the regulatory and economic
impact of increasing wagering limits for the game of Texas
Hold'em poker to one hundred dollars.
(1) The pilot program will commence October 11, 2010, and conclude on March 31, 2012. House-banked or Class F card game licensees may voluntarily request to participate in the pilot program by submitting a written request to the director or his designee. Staff will report results of the pilot program along with their recommendations at the November 2012 commission meeting.
(2) House-banked or Class F card game licensees must document, retain and provide the following information, and such further information the commission may request, in the format we prescribe during the pilot program:
(a) Daily food and beverage sales; and
(b) The number of customers requesting to be self-barred; and
(c) All incidents of suspected cheating occurring at tables offering the higher wager limits.
(3) In the event a licensee fails to attempt to comply with the requirements of the pilot program, the director shall have the authority to remove that licensee from participation in the pilot program. Upon removal from the pilot program, the licensee will return to the wagering limits authorized in WAC 230-15-135. Removal from the pilot program shall not be subject to review or appeal.
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