March 19th, 2013
By Poker Players Alliance
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Weekly Update from Rich Muny, VP of Player Relations
Preet Bharara, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced late last week that the Garden City Group will serve as the claims administrator to oversee the Full Tilt Poker player remission process. This is terrific news and is an important milestone. It will still be a while for this to complete, of course, as there is a defined governmental process to be followed, but we are clearly on course for repayment.
I encourage every U.S. player owed money by Full Tilt Poker to visit www.fulltiltpokerclaims.com and to sign up there for email updates. As this sign-up is just for updates, there is no need to worry about matching your information with that on file with Full Tilt. Still, for what it’s worth, I logged into Full Tilt and used that information to ensure my email and name matched exactly (“Richard” vs. “Rich”, middle initial vs. name, etc.).
The PPA Full Tilt Poker Player Remission Resource Center is at /repayment. We continually update the site with the all the information you will need.
PPA has done a lot with the Department of Justice to represent our collective interests as players. PPA made the case that we players we are victims of a fraud deserving remission and explained why remission should be based on our balances versus our deposits. Seeking to streamline the application process, we also shared what players should reasonably be expected to have in terms of documentation. And, PPA is still there making our case. Had we players not organized ourselves, we would have no input into this process at all. I thank everyone who took a stand to organize and to fight together as a unified team!
New York Update
As I mentioned in last week’s update, the New York State Senate passed a non-binding budget proposal that includes a provision to allow for licensing of online poker in the state. PPA New York State Director Randy Hagen and PPA were instrumental in reaching out to Senate leadership to encourage them to include the online poker provision in the Senate budget.
PPA has since continued dialog with lobbyists and lawmakers in Albany in an effort to include Internet poker licensing as an amendment to the state’s budget. After all, licensing of Internet poker would provide players with strong consumer protections and give the state tens of millions in revenue without raising taxes. The budget negotiations are still ongoing but, in all frankness, it does not appear likely at this point that the poker amendment will make it into the final budget bill.
The fight is now just beginning in New York. The state legislature will reconvene on May 2nd. We will push for Internet poker legislation to be considered along with an effort to bring brick-and-mortar casinos to the state. We look forward to making the case that New York needs to be a leader for licensing of online poker. It is a good bet for the players and for the state!
I spoke with Randy Hagen about the effort in New York at length on Monday’s Poker Advocacy with Rich Muny webcast. If you missed the live show, I encourage you to check out the podcast here.
Poker Bills Pending in the Texas Legislature
State Senator Leticia Van de Putte is sponsoring two bills (SB 1103 and SJR 43) to opt Texas into federally licensed online poker, should such a bill pass the U.S. Congress. We are working with her to encourage her to expand her legislation to allow Texas to compact with other states like New Jersey that recently passed online poker legislation and may be offering real money play by the end of this year.
In other news, later this week we expect to learn if a hearing will be scheduled on other Texas poker bills. As I mentioned in last week’s update, Representative Eddie Rodriguez introduced HB 292, the Poker Gaming Act of 2013, which designates poker as a “game of skill.” Additionally, Representative Ryan Guillen filed HB 2098, the Social Poker Gaming Act of 2013, which would provide for social poker clubs in Texas. PPA is working with Texas lawmakers to ensure poker players have a strong presence at any hearings that are scheduled.
Here are the current poker bills pending in Texas:
HB 292
HB 2098
SB 1103
SJR 43
HB 3529
Join the PPA
Over the past few weeks, we have been communicating with you about our ambitious goals for poker rights going forward. Historic victories like the one in New Jersey cannot be duplicated elsewhere without your support. We can’t win the fight for our poker rights without the strong financial backing of the poker community. Whether you live in New Jersey or Washington, or any of the 48 other states of this great country, being a 2013 PPA member is the smartest bet for the future of our game. Join today for only $15 to receive the great benefits of membership and to help us continue the fight for our rights as poker players.
Interviews
Upcoming Appearances:
- The Poker Advocacy with Rich Muny webcast on OnTilt Radio airs live each Monday at 8 pm ET/5 pm PT. Visit the show site at ontiltradio.com/ppa. Listen live here.
- Webcast: “PPA Weekly Update” airs live each Sunday at 6:45 pm ET/3:45 pm PT on Fifth Street Radio. Listen live here.
Recent appearances:
- OnTilt Radio (3/18): “Poker Advocacy with Rich Muny.” I was joined by PPA NY State Director Randy Hagen for a great chat on proposed online and B&M poker laws in New York, charitable poker, and poker advocacy! Listen here or on iTunes here.
- Fifth Street Radio (3/17): I sat down with Mark Hoke for a great discussion on the FTP remission and general advocacy. I come on at time point 0:51:01. Listen here.
- PokerNewsBoy (3/13): “PPA Check-In with Rich Muny: Just the facts ma’am.” I sat down with PNB’s Steve Ruddock for our regular print interview on the poker advocacy effort. Read here.
- Fifth Street Radio (3/10): I sat down with Mark Hoke last week for a great discussion on state bills and poker advocacy efforts. I come on at time point 0:47:41 of Part 1. Listen here.
Interview Archives:
- Poker Advocacy with Rich Muny: show site, show archive, free iTunes download
- Fifth Street Radio PPA Weekly Update: site archive, free iTunes download
Social Media
For the most up-to-date news, follow us at:
Live and Let Grind!
My wife and I went out for lunch this Sunday. Here’s a shot of me wearing my green AND showing my support for poker on St. Patrick’s Day, thanks to the great PPA edition Live and Let Grind shirts from Grinder Gear Clothing Co.!
If you want one too, they are available at www.liveandletgrind.com. For each PPA edition shirt they sell, Grinder Gear will donate 20% of the purchase price to PPA!
Thank you for your continued support!
Proud to play,
Rich Muny
The PPA wishes to keep active members like yourself updated on the latest poker advocacy news by periodically sending out select events and headlines. We hope you find it informative and thank you for your continuing support.
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The Poker Players AllianceDedicated to Protecting America’s Favorite Card Game The Poker Players Alliance is a nonprofit membership organization comprised of poker players and enthusiasts from around the United States who have joined together to speak with one voice to promote the game and to protect poker players’ rights. Visit us at theppa.org
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