Washington Gambling Age

Gambling Age Washington State
Washington State Gambling Age
Legal Gambling Age Washington State
Legal Gambling Age Washington

It’s no use fighting it: gambling is as popular as it’s ever been throughout the United States, and far from being the exception that proves the rule, the state of Washington is a prime example of how gambling continues to grow in popularity. The problem that residents face is not a lack of interest, but rather a lack of knowledge concerning the gambling laws in Washington. While many land based and online options exist for residents of the Evergreen State to wager with, the legal landscape is often difficult to navigate.

Type of gambling Minimum age Relevant sections of the Act Gambling in casinos or other licensed gambling premises It is illegal to permit any person under the age of 18 to enter a licensed gambling premises. The only exception is licensed family entertainment centres. 18: 46, 47, 48 and 49 Gaming machine (Machine category: A, B1, B2, B3, B3A. Casinos in Washington have the right to make the gambling age 21 should there be alcohol permitted. Card clubs contribute 20% to gaming income. Tribal casinos have to form a gaming compact with the state that is selected by the governor. Some states allow 18 year olds to gamble. Alaska, Idaho, Kansas, Maine, Minnesota, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Vermont, Washington and Wyoming all have gambling ages of 18. Every other state in the Union has fixed their gambling age at 21, and you cannot get around this in any way.

This page is devoted to the gambling laws in Washington and will break down both the federal policies that impact gambling on US soil and the state laws that are specific to the state. It is our great hope that all residents that read this page will leave it with a deeper understanding of the Washington gambling laws, and hot they may work with them in the future.

While there are actually several facilities that offer sanctioned gambling in the state of Washington, they do boast some of the harshest language and hypothetical penalties for online gambling in the business. However, it’s important to know that aside from the language in the constitution, no Washington resident has ever been arrested for gambling online, only for facilitating online gambling by running a website. Legal offshore gambling sites that accept Washington residents still operate every day, and no one has ever been imprisoned or fined for using them.

RCW 9.46.010 - Here we have the purpose statement of the gambling laws in Washington. While there are policies that theoretically prevent residents from gambling online, the real target is larger crime syndicates. Targeting these factions serves the double purpose of attacking organized crime and protecting sanctioned casinos in Washington. Again, despite the harsh language of this law, no Washington resident who has been a mere player at legal gambling sites was ever arrested.

RCW 9.46.0237 - Here we have a comprehensive definition of gambling. Again, while gambling both online and in person is considered a crime in accordance with the state constitution, it’s important to note that no resident has ever been arrested for merely taking part in gambling.

RCW 9.46.0269 - This statute is one of the most serious pieces of gambling code in the state of Washington. “Professional” Gambling is often charged, and state authorities will seek out guilty parties to charge with this crime.

“Professional gambling in the second degree is a class C felony” - Yikes! Washington lawmakers are not kidding around about stamping out illicit gambling operations in their state. While gamblers are never brought up on charges, those who operate illicit gambling games are often punished to the fullest extent of the law.

Look Up All The Gambling Laws In Washington - Click Here

Federal Laws Affecting Gambling & Online Gambling In Washington

The first law that really had an effect on betting in the United States passed in 1961. The Federal Wire act made it impossible for bookmakers to transfer information related to sports betting across state lines. This was the first major blow dealt to organized crime in America and loosened the stranglehold that these criminal elements held over the country, especially in Chicago.

If the Wire Act made it hard to run a law abiding bookmaking business, the PASPA (short for the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act) passed in 1992 made it impossible. Now, instead of the act of transmitting betting information across state lines being the only criminal charge associated with sports betting, this bill made it a crime to take a bet at all, even on land. Four states were exempt from the PASPA in Oregon, Montana, Delaware and Nevada, but unfortunately, in Washington, it passed unopposed.

The final federal law that gamblers in Washington need to deal with is the UIGEA or, the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act if you’re nasty. When the Supreme Court ruled that the wire act did not apply to all forms of gambling and only sports betting, Congress tacked the UIGEA on to the safe port act and thus criminalized all online gambling operations in the United States.

It’s easy to gamble without garnering any legal attention in the state of Washington. There is, however, one key exception. Players absolutely must wait until they are over the legal gambling age of 18 before attempting to take part in any gambling activity. With such a comparatively low gambling age, gamblers can be sure that state law enforcement agencies will be on the lookout for anyone in violation of this policy.

Online Gambling In Washington...What's The Verdict?

The language concerning gambling, especially legal online gambling in Washington, can sound scary, but it’s all bark. No otherwise honest resident of the Evergreen State has found themselves in trouble merely for gambling online, so don’t let the constitution bring you down. With all the land based options spread throughout the state, the temptation to check them out may be there, but players should not feel restrained to those few locations.

See More: Online Casinos - Online Sportsbooks - Poker Sites

Introduction to Washington Slot Machine Casino Gambling in 2020

Washington slot machine casino gambling consists of 31 tribal casinos with a unique type of electronic player terminal based on scratch tickets controlled by a state-wide Tribal Lottery System (TLS).

All state-tribal compacts set a minimum theoretical payout limit. However, no return statistics are publicly available.

This post continues my weekly State-By-State Slot Machine Casino Gambling Series, an online resource dedicated to guiding slot machine casino gambler to success. Now in its third year, each weekly post reviews slots gambling in a single U.S. state, territory, or federal district.

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Relevant Legal Statutes on Gambling in Washington*

The minimum legal gambling age in Washington depends upon the gambling activity:

Land-Based Casinos: 18/21 depending upon the casino
Poker Rooms: 18
Bingo: 18
Lottery: 18
Pari-Mutuel Wagering: 18

Washington’s player terminals at tribal casinos are based on the lottery’s scratch ticket games in electronic form. This unique form of slot machines makes Washington slot machines unique in the U.S. All other U.S.-based lottery terminals are based on draw lotteries, not from lotteries other game: scratch tickets.

Twenty-nine tribes originally negotiated tribal-state compacts to offer gambling at tribal casinos. However, the state and these tribes could not agree whether Vegas-style slot machines should be legal in Washington.

Scratch-based gaming machines resulted from early negotiations of these gaming compacts. This impasse resolution led to creating a secondary lottery system for player terminals at tribal casinos. The state lottery was a model for the TLS.

Draw-based terminals create tickets at the time of the bet using random number generators (RNGs). However, scratch-based terminals know in advance the result of each wager. Put another way, the outcome of each bet is pre-determined and do not require an RNG.

Another technical difference between lottery draw tickets and scratch tickets is how many of them can exist. For example, there are as many draw tickets as players are willing to buy. However, lotteries create only a limited number of scratch tickets but, hopefully, enough for a busy night at a Washington tribal casino.

All negotiated tribal-state compacts also have other legal restrictions for their scratch-based terminal-style slot machines. These limits have been expanding over time as part of this state’s dynamic gaming industry. The requirements are:

Allows replaying of credits won
No handles
No mechanical spinning wheels
A minimum payout return (see below)
$5 maximum wager on 85% on VLTs
$20 maximum wager on 15% of VLTs
Cap of 2,500 VLT machines per tribe

*The purpose of this section is to inform the public of state gambling laws and how the laws might apply to various forms of gaming. It is not legal advice.

Slot Machine Private Ownership in Washington

It is legal to own a slot machine privately in the state of Washington if it is 25 years old or older.

Gaming Control Board in Washington

The gaming control board is the Washington State Gambling Commission offering licensing, regulation, and enforcement of certain aspects of the gaming industry in Washington. Their regulatory responsibilities primarily include testing and approving new electronic gaming machines.

Further, each tribe with a casino in Washington has a tribal gaming agency (TGA). Agents of a TGA are the primary regulators at tribal casinos. At all times, at least one TGA agent must be on duty at a tribal casino.

Gambling Age Washington State

Casinos in Washington

There are 31 American Indian tribal casinos and multiple cruise ships based in the state of Washington.

The largest casino in Washington is Muckleshoot Casino with 3,125 electronic gaming terminals.

The second-largest casino is Ilani Casino Resort with 2,500 electronic gaming terminals.

Commercial Casinos in Washington

The state of Washington has no commercial casinos with slot machines.

Tribal Casinos in Washington

The state of Washington has 31 tribal casinos:

Angel of the Winds Casino Resort in Arlington, 50 miles north of Seattle
BJ’s Bingo & Gaming in Fife near Tacoma
Chewelah Casino in Chewelah, 50 miles north of Spokane
Coulee Dam Casino in Coulee Dam, 40 miles north of Seattle, owned by 12 Tribes Colville Casinos
Elwha River Casino in Port Angeles, 70 miles northwest of Seattle
Emerald Queen Casino & Hotel (EQC) in Fife near Tacoma
Emerald Queen Casino (EQC) I-5 in Tacoma
Ilani Casino Resort in Ridgefield, 25 miles north of Portland near the border to Oregon
Kalispel Casino in Cusick, 53 miles north of Spokane
Little Creek Casino Resort in Shelton, 23 miles north of Olympia
Lucky Dog Casino in Skokomish, 23 miles north of Olympia
Lucky Eagle Casino & Hotel in Rochester, 26 miles south of Olympia
Mill Bay Casino in Manson, 200 miles northeast of Seattle on the north shore of Lake Chelan, owned by 12 Tribes Colville Casinos
Muckleshoot Casino in Auburn, 20 miles south of Seattle
Nooksack Northwood Casino in Lynden, 14 miles north of Bellingham
Northern Quest Resort & Casino in Airway Heights, 10 miles west of Spokane
The Point Casino in Kingston, 18 miles west of Seattle via Bainbridge Ferry
Quil Ceda Creek Nightclub & Casino in Quil Ceda Village, 30 miles north of Seattle
Quinault Beach Resort and Casino in Ocean Shores, 90 miles west of Tacoma
Red Wind Casino in Olympia
7 Cedars Casino in Sequim, 70 miles northwest of Seattle by ferry
Shoalwater Bay Casino in Tokeland, 75 miles southwest of Olympia
Silver Reef Casino Resort in Ferndale, 17 miles north of Bellingham
Skagit Valley Casino Resort in Bow, 75 miles north of Seattle
Snoqualmie Casino in Snoqualmie, 30 miles east of Seattle
Spokane Tribe Casino in Airway Heights, 9 miles west of Spokane
Suquamish Clearwater Casino Resort in Suquamish, 15 miles west of Seattle via Bainbridge Ferry
Swinomish Casino & Lodge in Anacortes, 70 miles north of Seattle
Tulalip Casino in Quil Ceda Village, 30 miles north of Seattle
12 Tribes Casino in Omak, 165 miles northeast of Seattle, owned by 12 Tribes Colville Casinos
Yakama Legends Casino in Toppenish, 20 miles south of Yakama

Other Gambling Establishments

As an alternative to enjoying Washington slot machine casino gambling, consider exploring casino options in a nearby state. Bordering Washington is:

North: The Canadian Province of British Columbia
East: Idaho Slots
South: Oregon Slots
West: The Pacific Ocean

Each of the links above will take you to my blog for that neighboring U.S. state to Washington.

Our Washington Slots Facebook Group

Are you interested in sharing and learning with other slots enthusiasts in Washington? If so, join our Washington slots community on Facebook. All you’ll need is a Facebook profile to join this closed Facebook Group freely.

There, you’ll be able to privately share your slots experiences as well as chat with players about slots gambling in Washington. Join us!

Payout Returns in Washington

The TLS directly controls the results of Washington’s unique terminal-style slot machines. TLS’ central computer system provides the outcome of each bet made on each terminal at the time of the wager. This off-site control extends to any bonus rounds.

All tribal-state compacts in Washington established a minimum theoretical payout of 75% for slot machines. Further, no return statistics for slots are available to the public.

Summary of Washington Slot Machine Casino Gambling in 2020

Washington slot machine casino gambling consists of 31 tribal casinos with electronic scratch ticket video player terminal slot machines. The state-run Tribal Lottery System (TLS) controls the results of all bets offsite from the tribal casinos.

Washington State Gambling Age

Tribal-state compacts have set a minimum theoretical payout of 75% for their unique terminal-style electronic slot machines. No return statistics are available to the public.

Annual Progress in Washington Slot Machine Casino Gambling

Legal Gambling Age Washington State

Over the last year, Tulalip Resort Casino with its 2,400 gaming machines has dropped from second largest casino to third largest, replaced by Ilani Casino Resort with its 2,500 gaming machines.

Further, two tribal casinos have opened within the last year, including Kalispel Casino in Cusick located 53 miles north of Spokane and Spokane Tribe Casino located in Airway Heights a few miles west of Spokane.

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