In the world of online poker, it looks like politicians in California are once again trying to get a seat at the table. On Friday, February 22nd, State Senator Lou Correa introduced a bill that would legalize online poker for California’s residents. The official title of the bill is the Authorization and Regulation of Internet Poker and Consumer Protection Act of 2025. It would amend California's gambling code to authorize online poker sites to operate within the state.

If you’ve been following online poker legalization news, you might be wondering, “Didn’t the California State Senate already have an online poker bill up for consideration a few months ago?” The answer is yes. During the last legislative session in March 2025, State Senator Roderick Wright introduced the Internet Gambler Consumer Protection and Public-Private Partnership Act of 2025. The bill was eventually restricted to “poker only” after pressure from brick-and-mortar cardrooms and Indian gaming tribes, but it ultimately failed over disagreement on how to split up the market.

Before all you California-based poker aficionados get too excited over this latest attempt to get the Golden State on board the online poker bandwagon, keep in mind that this is a placeholder bill. It's only one and a half pages long and doesn't actually lay down any rules or regulations for the online poker industry in California. That will be left up to the California Gaming Control Commission to handle at a later date. Still, the passage of the bill would be important on two levels.

First, it would create 1,300 jobs and generate up to $1.4 billion in revenue for California. Secondly, it would drastically change the landscape of online poker in the United States, if legalization doesn't happen on a federal level. Because of their small populations, it's difficult for states to generate enough Internet traffic within their borders to make intrastate online poker a viable industry. That's why Nevada recently amended their existing law, allowing the state to create online poker partnerships with other states and increase the size of its player pool. Delaware is looking to team up with Nevada for this very reason.

California's 38 million residents make it an appetizing prospect for states looking to form interstate partnerships. However, Correa’s bill would only legalize online poker on the intrastate level. Californians would be able to play other Californians and no one else. Being the largest state in the US, California could serve as the ultimate model for the intrastate online poker industry. If it doesn’t work there, it’s doubtful that it will work anywhere. Either way, if the bill passes, there’s no doubt that an interstate partnership with California will be sought after by many. Only time will tell if California will be open to that possibility; it still needs to make it through the initial hurdle of legalization. Now that Governor Chris Christie recently brought online poker to New Jersey, there’s more incentive to legalize now than ever before.

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Reviewed By: +Alvaro Santos

My name is Alvaro Santos, I'm part of a team of experienced poker players, who have been playing poker for many years now. I'm sharing my experiences about the different online poker rooms by reviewing and rating them accordingly take many factors into consideration. I'm reviewing these sites to give you my professional and objective perspective about the best poker rooms online.