April 16, 2010 (CAP Newswire) – After a widespread outcry from the poker world, a Massachusetts bill currently being fast-tracked through that state’s legislature has been changed to exclude some language that had hinted that Internet poker playing would be criminalized under new gambling laws.
“The offensive language was eliminated following a consolidated amendment passed on Tuesday,” writes Tom Jenkins at PokerNewsDaily.
The amendment reads: “And move to further amend the bill by striking out, in lines 2695 to 2704, inclusive, the following words: (v) Any person who knowingly transmits or receives a wager of any type by any telecommunication device, including telephone, cellular phone, Internet, local area network, including wireless local networks, or any other similar device or equipment … shall be punished.”
(That punishment had been thought to be two years in jail and a penalty of a $25,000 fine.)
The Poker Players Alliance (PPA) has been credited with helping get the above amendment logged. That’s not the only amendment to the controversial bill (which will likely become law soon enough, which in itself is a fairly historical event). Some 60 other proposed amendments have been added as well. Click here to read more at PokerNewsDaily.com.