New York Online Poker Back on the Table for 2025

A Renewed Effort: Senator Pretlow’s S2614 Bill

Let’s begin with the basics of this proposal. State Senator Gary Pretlow is leading the charge this year with Senate Bill 2614, a proposal to legalize casino-style iGaming, including online poker. The bill has already been assigned to the Senate Racing, Gaming, and Wagering Committee, which Pretlow chairs, meaning the bill already has a strong initial backing.

While proposed now, this bill is by no means a new venture. It builds on Pretlow’s earlier legislative attempts, including a similar effort in 2023-24 that passed a full Senate vote but failed to move forward after Governor Kathy Hochul excluded iGaming provisions from the state budget.

A Key Omission: No Multi-State Poker Language

While the bill builds on previous attempts, there’s one noticeable change in the 2025 proposal – the absence of language allowing New York to join multi-jurisdictional poker agreements, such as the Multi-State Internet Gaming Agreement (MSIGA). If you’ll remember from previous reporting, Pennsylvania was the fifth and latest state to join MSIGA at the end of last year. In essence, this agreement would enable player pooling across state lines, boosting online poker traffic and prize pools in the process.

This omission is likely a political compromise to reduce potential pushback from lawmakers who aren’t too set on seeing the bill passed into law. And while this would be a potentially needed compromise, it could push back New York’s entry into player pooling by several years, which happened in states like Michigan and Pennsylvania that initially launched online poker as standalone markets before later joining MSIGA.

Senator Addabbo’s Push for iGaming and Regulation

Parallel to Pretlow, Senator Joseph Addabbo has reintroduced a separate bill focused on broader iGaming legalization. Putting it in layman terms, Addabbo’s proposal includes online casino games, lottery sales, and a regulated framework for both new and existing gambling operators.

As of this draft, the bill wants to ensure responsible gambling practices by earmarking $25 million annually for casino employee training and mandating servers to be housed in state casinos. It also introduces a three-year timeout period for unregulated operators, a move targeting offshore and sweepstakes casinos that operate in legal gray areas.

Tackling the Sweepstakes Casino Issue

As part of his push for iGaming regulation, Addabbo has constantly emphasized the need to address sweepstakes casinos, which he argues are predatory and unregulated alternatives to legal gambling platforms. These operations often advertise “free play” with the option to purchase virtual coins for prizes, skirting traditional gambling laws. Addabbo has called for either banning or regulating these entities, following the example of states like Michigan and Washington.