The US online gambling world has picked up its first minor legislative victory of 2025, as Indiana's recently introduced iGaming measure, House Bill 1432, has passed its first committee vote.
State Rep. Ethan Manning succeeded in getting his HB 1432 through its first vote after an initial hearing in the House Committee on Public Policy, which Manning chairs. The bill passed on a 9-2 tally, which mirrors the result of a similar measure that his committee passed in 2023.
HB 1432 was returned to the full House floor on Thursday, along with a committee report, and was then sent on to its next waystation, the House Ways and Means committee, through which all fiscal matters in the state must travel.
HB 1432 also picked up three co-sponsors in recent days. Reps. Cory Criswell, Justin Moed, and Steve Bartels have signed on to the legislation, with Manning remaining the primary sponsor.
Former PPA president testifies at hearing
One of the interesting footnotes from this week's hearing was an appearance by former Poker Players Alliance (PPA) president John Pappas, a long-time advocate of online poker. After a couple of years lobbying for different interests, Pappas has since returned to the iGaming fold, working for the iDevelopment and Economic Association (IDEA Growth).
IDEA Growth is billed as a non-profit organization that is "seeking to grow jobs and expand online interactive entertainment business in the United States" through advocacy and education. The organization has begun to gather support for iGaming initiatives, replacing a long-time lobby hole left open by the American Gaming Association, which has traditionally focused on land-based casino matters.
Pappas is a knowledgeable veteran of the iGaming and online-poker legislative wars who ran the PPA for the majority of its existence. Though the PPA at one time claimed over a million poker-playing members, it functioned more as an astroturf lobbying entity funded by sites such as Full Tilt and PokerStars. Following 2011's "Black Friday," the PPA faltered as most of its corporate support disappeared.
