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Land-Based Gambling In Wyoming. There are several land-based gambling options in Wyoming, but none of them is particularly comprehensive, due to the state’s lack of commercial or Class III Indian casinos. That said, there are a number of racetrack facilities in the state that offer “racino” services like slots and electronic table games. State law in Wyoming does contain a clause excluding social home gaming from the definition of gambling, allowing in Section 6-7-101 that “Any game, wager or transaction which is incidental to a bona fide social relationship, is participated in by natural persons only, and in which no person is participating, directly or indirectly, in.

• Gambling Casinos In Wyoming
• Gambling In Riverton Wyoming
• Gambling Wyoming Real Estate
• Gambling Wyoming Jobs

Map showing location of casinos in Wyoming with hotel room discounts and information on slot machines, blackjack, craps and poker plus amenities like casino entertainment, golf, hotel spas casino promotions. House Bill 171 – Wyoming gaming commission, sponsored by the travel committee, looks to be one such under-the-radar measure this session. Early legislative comments focused on the idea that it regulates gambling. It’s more accurate, however, to describe the measure as legalizing instant-gratification gambling on a new level for the state.

Strictly speaking, gambling is illegal in Wyoming.

However, in recent years, lawmakers approved a state lottery. There are two horse racing tracks in the state, Sweetwater Downs and Wyoming Downs. Pari-mutuel wagering on the races are legal at these tracks. People can also bet on racing simulcasts at the tracks and off-track betting parlors around the state. Plus, charity bingo and raffles are legal. Additionally, a handful of tribal casinos with slot machines, tables games, and live poker have been up and running since the tribes fought for the right to run casinos in 2005.

The tribal casinos are the 789 Smokeshop & Casino, Little Wind Casino, Shoshone Rose Casino & Hotel, as well as and the first and still largest, the Wind River Hotel & Casino.

Getting approval for tribal gaming in Wyoming was no easy feat. The Northern Arapaho Tribe, which owns and operates the Wind River Hotel & Casino, took the state to federal court to fight for its right to operate a casino under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act of 1988.

The tribe claimed that since Wyoming had allowed charitable gaming for fundraising purposes, it should be allowed to operate a casino on tribal land in accordance with the act. In 2005, the court agreed. The Northern Arapaho Tribe set about turning its small bingo parlor into the state’s largest casino and gaming operation. There are now 800 gaming machines on the property, featuring some of the most popular slots on the market.

Recently, the North Arapaho tribe argued it did not need state approval to offer sports betting at its casinos. In a statement, the tribe said it conducts gaming under authorization from the US Department of the Interior. No timeline has been released, but it appears sports betting will be coming to the tribe’s three casinos in the near future. However, it is highly unlikely that mobile wagering will be offered.

Since it fought the opening of Wind River, the state was left out in the cold when it came to revenue sharing. However, by the time the Eastern Shoshone Tribe started making plans to open the competing Shoshone Rose Casino & Hotel, Wyoming lawmakers got wise. They negotiated a revenue-sharing deal with the tribe. The Shoshone Rose Casino & Hotel is currently open and operating with as many as 400 gaming machines on site.

Sweepstakes casinos in Wyoming

Social casino site options

Since there’s no real money involved, people living in Wyoming or visiting the state are free to play on social casino sites all they want.

Social casino games are a multi-billion dollar market. The most popular include app-based games for Android and iOS operating systems. People can download these to a mobile device or Facebook-based apps. These include casino-style games developed by industry leaders such as Zynga, ActivisionBlizzard, KoreanNexon, and Supercell. Social gaming revenues reached more than $1.5 in the United States in 2016. However, Asia remains the largest market with $2.2 billion in revenue in 2015 and more than 500 million users reported.

Land-based slots options

Gambling Casinos In Wyoming

Online gambling options

Online casinos cannot legally operate in Wyoming.

Players may be able to access any number of offshore online casinos from inside Wyoming’s borders. However, playing on them may fall into a legal gray area. This is due to the fact that gambling is strictly against the law outside of legalized operations and tribal casinos. So playing slots on these sites would have to be considered against the law as well.

When it comes to gaming, Wyoming is not the most progressive state. It only recently jumped on board with certain ideas other states have employed for decades. The state lottery only became legal in 2013. Tribal casinos came just a few years before that, but not without a lengthy fight.

In 2016, state lawmakers were said to be reviewing all facets of the gaming industry. They are considering establishing a state gaming commission. It would regulate all gambling and consider new operations, online and off. However, no gaming bills were created or commissions established coming out of those discussions. The issue of internet gaming is not on any current agenda for Wyoming lawmakers.

Operator profile

The Wind River Hotel and Casino

The Wind River Hotel and Casino is widely considered Wyoming’s premier gaming establishment. It has more than 800 slot machines, 10 live table games, and a live poker room. This is, by far, the largest gaming facility in the state.

Located just south of Riverton, the operation began more than 20 years ago as a small bingo hall operated by the Northern Arapaho Tribe. It has grown into Fremont County’s largest employer with 700 people now working there. There is a 90-room hotel on the property, plus two full service restaurants, cafe, and an espresso bar.

The casino runs a number of promotions all year round, a free-to-join rewards program, regular no-limit poker tournaments, and a Bad Beat Jackpot inside the poker room.

Table games available include blackjack and roulette. The more-than 800 gaming machines on the property include video slots, reel slots, video poker, and slots with progressive jackpots ranging from penny slots to $25 machines. This includes some of the most popular slot games on the market today. All the machines use a ticket-in ticket-out system with cashiers, change kiosks and ATM machines available 24 hours a day.

State legal environment

Gambling In Riverton Wyoming

An Overview Of Gambling Laws In The State Of Wyoming

This has traditionally not been the most gambling friendly of States, and has only recently allowed casino gaming after being over-ruled by Federal judges concerning their refusal to negotiate compacts with tribes in their State. There are restrictions on most forms of gambling, even those which are legal, and concessions appear hard to get through the legislature. With limited options for betting on horse racing and only charity or the very recent lottery as alternatives, the choices in Wyoming are limited. This article takes a detailed look at the gambling laws in the State of Wyoming.

First of all below you will find a fast-paced history of gambling in Wyoming, leading up to the present day. After this the different types of games are listed, along with the current legal status of each one. Next you will find some details of the statutes, including the key wording, and a timeline of legal events. At the end of this page there is a summary of the current situation and a look towards the future.

Wyoming Gambling Laws – A Brief History

Other than a little pari-mutuel betting on horse races, and some charity bingo or ‘casino nights’ type events – the entire history of gambling legislation in Wyoming took place in the 21st century.

There were some legal issues which dated back to the 1990’s. When the Indian Gaming Regulation Act was passed at a Federal Level in 1988, many tribes approached different State governments looking to negotiate deals (known as ‘compacts’) to build and run casinos on their land.

Wyoming repeatedly refused to come to the negotiating table – and one of the tribes (the Northern Arapaho Tribe) decided to fight in the courts. There was more than 10 years of legal wrangling, and eventually the tribe won. Their case was at Federal level under the new Indian Gaming rules, and gave them the right to offer the top-tier class 3 casino games in 2005.

This finally brought the government to the negotiation table, and compacts were signed with both the Northern Arapaho tribe and the Eastern Shoshone Tribe in 2006). The casinos operated by these tribes represent the only legal casinos and only live poker room in the entire State.

Poker fans have one other option in Wyoming – home games. You can play in a social poker game as long as the participants have a bona-fide (presumably social) relationship, and nobody is raking the pot or making a profit from hosting the game. This is a standard enough definition for these games, and does not mention the stakes played in this case.

Betting on horse racing has been expanded recently to include simulcast and betting-terminals for past races (the horse’s names are removed). This industry went into terminal decline, stopping altogether in 2010. In 2014, live racing will return, though it is yet to be seen whether the expanded betting options will be enough for this to continue.

2014 also saw the start of the lottery in Wyoming, after 20 years of attempts to get this started. Even now there are restrictions compared to other States. There are no lottery terminals, scratch-cards or other ‘instant gratification’ games. To compensate for the lack of gratification, you can take part in Inter-State draws including the Mega-millions.

Last but not least, charity gambling has been allowed under strict license in Wyoming for many years. You can enjoy bingo, pull-tabs, raffles and ‘casino nights’ type entertainment for limited prizes. Poker is not one of the games you can play under the charity rules in this State.

What Forms Of Gambling Are Currently Legal?

Casino Games: Yes, there are two tribal casinos offering class 3 casino games and poker. There are no casinos outside of tribal lands in Wyoming.

Online Casinos: No, while not explicitly banned, the current statutes are assumed by the authorities to prohibit online gambling.

Live Poker: Yes, you can enjoy poker games in one of the tribal casinos. Home poker games are permitted, though you must be able to prove a ‘bona-fide’ relationship with your fellow players and nobody is allowed to take a rake or charge a fee to host the game.

Online Poker: No, there is no current suggestion that this State will regulate online poker games.

Sports Betting: Yes, you can bet on horse races in pari-mutuel (pooled) format. For a while there were no racing events to bet on in this State, though one racetrack will reopen this year and offer 16 days of racing. You can also bet on past races with the names of the horses hidden using electronic terminals.

Lottery Betting: Yes, rather than their own draw, Wyoming participates in multi-State games which offer the bigger prizes including PowerBall and Mega Millions. The wording of the lottery law makes ‘instant gratification’ games like scratch-cards, out of scope.

Bingo Games: Yes, these are available under charity gambling law in Wyoming, along with raffles.

Wyoming Gambling Laws – Statutes And Legal Timeline

Pro-gambling parties have had to fight for every tiny concession in this State, and even when they succeeded it was with a long list of terms and conditions attached. The original 1890 laws were created just as prohibition was approaching, in an era when there was a strong desire to control the excesses of the early settlers. The key component of the statutes is the wagering, and the chance factor does include a ‘whole or part’ sentence which spoils the party for fans of the skill game argument for poker.

Here is the key wording:

[su_quote]” “Gambling” means risking any property for gain contingent in whole or in part upon lot, chance, the operation of a gambling device or the happening or outcome of an event, including a sporting event, over which the person taking a risk has no control…” (6-7-101)[/su_quote]

There are plenty more definitions, including details of gambling devices, gambling premises, profiting from the games and so on. The core message is clear, if there is any element of risk at all, and no exceptions listed on the books – then you are breaking the law.

Here is a timeline of legal events for Wyoming:

1967: Pari-mutuel racing commission established to oversee both racing and betting on this. After years of decline there were no races by 2010. With the help of simulcast racing and terminals allowing betting on historic races, racing was due to start again in 2014.

1989: Federal Indian Gaming Regulatory Act passed, though Wyoming refused to enter into negotiations. This led to more than 10 years of legal battles.

2005: Federal court of appeals grants the Arapaho tribe the right to run a full range of casino games on their land.

2006: Compacts at last negotiated with the two Wyoming based tribes. They now run casinos on their ‘Wind River’ reservation.

2013: Lottery made legal, with the first games in early 2014, the statute stipulated that no ‘start-up dollars’ were to be made available for this.

Wyoming Gambling Laws – Summary And Look To The Future

The last few years have been busy for the gambling committees in the Wyoming legislature. Changes to the lottery laws and additions to racing betting laws have come hot on the heels of the tribal compact negotiations. While this looks like progress, there still appears to be some reluctance within these Statutes to allow too much freedom to gamble in Wyoming.

I can’t see this State being an early adopter of regulated online poker or gambling. In fact, if the lottery is anything to go by, they might wait 20 years or so after seeing it working in other States and then make this legal with massive restrictions. With the rate of change picking up recently, you just never know.

Gambling Wyoming Real Estate

Useful Resources:

Statutes

• http://legisweb.state.wy.us/statutes/statutes.aspx?file=titles/Title6/T6CH7.htm

Statues Summary

History Of Pari-Mutuel Racing

Gambling Wyoming Jobs

Tribal Casinos Background