Online poker, Michigan moves forward with bill to regulate

A bill to regulate and legalize online poker in Michigan was overwhelmingly approved by a Senate committee on Wednesday. But, according to the office of State Senator Mike Kowall, the primary sponsor of the bill and the Senate Majority Floor Leader, it will not go any further during the current legislative session, meaning it won't be voted on by the Senate until after Labor Day, at the earliest.

"There's not enough time (for the Senate to vote on it before June 16), but yesterday was obviously a huge step forward," Dave Biswas, chief of staff and legislative director to Senator Kowall, told Casino City on Thursday morning. "Our goal was to get the bill out of committee and onto the Senate floor, and that's what we did."