The New Jersey Legislature, in a bold step to remain one of the most important and relevant gaming centers in America, recently passed legislation that if signed by Governor Chris Christie, will make the state the first to have fully regulated online poker as part of its intrastate gambling program.

This piece of legislation, which passed by a significant margin in both the State Assembly and the State Senate, was one of four bills pushed through Monday to help Jersey’s sagging economy; an economy cannibalized over the last few years by the loosening of gambling restrictions in nearby states and on native lands.

Assuming Governor Christie signs- and even in the unlikely case that he tried to veto the bill it appears there are enough votes to easily override him- New Jersey citizens could potentially legally play online poker with other residents of the state as early as this July.  Which by the way, is what citizens will have to do, at least if they still want to play online poker, as the new bill also prohibits citizens from playing online poker on sites not located in New Jersey.

This intrastate gambling model will most likely seem unusual and restrictive at first, particularly for those residents use to the hundreds of thousands of players often found on sites like PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker, but it could soon become the norm as other states quickly discover the money making benefits of intrastate poker. 

Clearly by being the first in the intrastate gambling pool, New Jersey legislators are hoping that's exactly what happens and that these other states look toward Jersey when creating their own gambling networks.  Most likely Jersey poker players are hoping the same thing happens as well, but in their case so some sort of reciprocity agreement may soon be sorted out, to again make it possible for them to play with more than just themselves.