Logo courtesy of The California Gaming Association

SACRAMENTO REGION, CA (MPG) - The California Gaming Association, with support from the California Cardroom Alliance (CCA) and the Communities for California Cardrooms (CCC), has filed two lawsuits in San Francisco Superior Court challenging new regulations issued by the California Department of Justice’s Bureau of Gambling Control, which would eliminate blackjack-style games and significantly restrict player-dealer games that have been legally operated in California cardrooms for decades. 

The lawsuits seek to block the regulations from taking effect and asks the court to invalidate the rules as unlawful.

According to the Attorney General’s own Standardized Regulatory Impact Assessment (SRIA), the regulations would eliminate at least 50 percent of cardroom jobs and revenue, which could force many cardrooms to close. Unless blocked by the court, implementation of the regulations is scheduled to start April 1, with actual changes to cardroom games coming as early as June.

The lawsuit explains that the regulations are an unprecedented power grab by the Attorney General that contradict state law in multiple ways. The rules reverse decades of settled law and practice under which these games were approved as lawful by multiple Attorneys General, including former Governor Jerry Brown and former Vice President Kamala Harris.

The cardroom industry contends the regulations lack any legal or factual basis and were adopted despite overwhelming opposition from cities, workers, and community leaders. The Department of Justice finalized the regulations on Feb. 9, leaving them unchanged despite receiving 1,764 public comments, nearly all of which raised concerns about the regulations’ legality and grave economic consequences. 

Cities, union members and community organizations across California have warned that the regulations could create severe fiscal crises. Cities have formally opposed the regulations, with some cities relying on cardroom revenues for as much as 70 percent of their general fund. In a recent letter to the Attorney General, the City of San Jose warned that cardroom revenues help fund police, fire and 9-1-1 operations.