Is Online Slot Gambling Legal in Your State?
While online gambling has made a big splash across the United States, it’s still a legal gray area for many states. Each one sets its own laws for the gaming industry, including what types of games are allowed and the minimum age for players. Some also have different rules on where people can place their wagers, with some banning it entirely, and others limiting it to brick-and-mortar locations. With that in mind, here’s a look at the current state of online slot gambling.
In the United States, there are a lot of different ways to gamble. There’s the lottery, horse racing, and casinos, all of which are regulated at the state level. However, the most popular form of gambling is in the online sphere, where people can place bets on sports events, casino games, and more. While the vast majority of states have some sort of iGaming regulation, there are two states that don’t allow any type of gambling at all: Hawaii and Utah.
It’s not as if these states are against online gambling per se, but rather that they want to be more careful about how it’s regulated. For example, Nevada has approved real-money iCasino games, but it’s still reluctant to let them run loose on the internet. It’s concerned that iCasino games would harm the profitability of its brick-and-mortar casinos.
Other states, such as North Carolina, are a little more relaxed about the industry. The Tar Heel State has a few in-person casinos and recently legalized online sports betting. Despite that, it’s still not ready to roll out iGaming for its residents, though there are multiple attempts underway to change that.
Meanwhile, New Jersey has been pushing ahead with iGaming for years, and its revenue streams are growing steadily. The Garden State is now home to a few dozen regulated operators, with iPoker and NJ online casino sites leading the way. The rest of the country is just now starting to catch up.
The only other state that hasn’t embraced iGaming is Massachusetts, which has only limited sweepstakes and social (free-play) games available. Legislation aimed at changing the state’s gambling laws has failed to gain any traction in 2020, meaning that traditional online casinos are likely to remain illegal in the Bay State for the time being. However, lawmakers are considering sports betting legislation this year, so iGaming might be coming to the Land of Liberty soon.