Maryland Votes Unanimously on Bill that Would Decriminalize Informal House Poker Games

Maryland Votes Unanimously on Bill that Would Decriminalize Informal House Poker Games, but Still Prohibits Electronic Money Transfers

Maryland currently upholds a suite of harsh poker gambling laws regarding informal games played in one’s own home. For-money home games in the state are punishable by jail time and a fine of $1000. This law, obviously, is not taken seriously by many.

Democratic Senator Nancy King, and Democratic Delegate Kirill Reznik, have both introduced legislation to remove these unrealistic penalties on home games. Reznik’s Bill, HB 59, passed in the House of Delegates by a unanimous vote of 139 - 0. It was also supported by nine other delegates.

HB 59 would allow “a person to conduct a home game that is a game of chance or 4 skill involving wagering that is conducted in a person’s home and allows a player to 5 compete directly against one or more other players.”

The two bills come with other certain conditions that would still be placed on house games. Such games must not be held any more frequently than once a week. Amounts wagered in house poker games must not exceed an amount larger than $500 (Reznik claims he had initially wanted the limit to be $2,000). Players must be at least 21 years of age. The house cannot promote the game and is forbidden from establishing a rake. Players are also required to have a “pre-existing social relationship.” In addition, the house cannot place bets over an electronic device, which would violate the Federal Wire Act.

HB 59 also states that “A person may not: (1) bet, wager, or gamble; (2) make or sell a book or pool on the result of a race, contest, or contingency; [or] (3) establish, keep, rent, use, or occupy, or knowingly allow to be established, kept, rented, used, or occupied, all or part of a building, vessel, or place, on land or water, within the state, for the purpose of: (i) betting, wagering, or gambling; or (ii) making, selling, or buying books or pools on the result of a race, contest, or contingency; or (4) receive, become a depository of, record, register, or forward, or propose, agree, or pretend to forward, money or any other thing or consideration of value, to be bet, wagered, or gambled on the result of a race, contest, or contingency.”

“[The existing Maryland law is] rarely enforced, and it’s a complete waste of police resources and time,” Reznick told the Baltimore Sun. “I imagine police have better things to do.”

Reznik also commented to the House Ways and Means committee that, “What makes a casino a casino is that a cut of the winnings is saved for the house… The laws are so restrictive now that a person’s home is deemed a casino.”

If passed, the law would come into effect on October 1.