California cardrooms just got hit with a bombshell. New state rules set to kick in next year could wipe out more than half their revenue overnight and put tens of thousands of workers on the street.
The California Gaming Association fired back hard on Tuesday, calling the regulations a direct attack on an industry that has operated the same way for decades.
Attorney General Rob Bonta and the Bureau of Gambling Control finalized changes that ban long-standing player-dealer games and certain blackjack-style offerings. These games make up the heart of most cardroom floors across the state.
Cardrooms say the move will slash their total revenue by over 50%. The Bureau’s own economic impact report backs that number and predicts the loss of roughly half the jobs in the sector.
Cities from Commerce to Bell Gardens could face sudden budget holes because they count on cardroom taxes to pay for police, fire stations, and parks.
Why the Sudden Crackdown?
State officials claim the rules simply enforce existing law that bans house-banked games in cardrooms. Tribal casinos, which offer full house-banked games under their compacts, have complained for years that cardrooms gained an unfair edge with player-dealer rotations.
The Gaming Association calls that argument weak. These same game formats won approval from past attorneys general and have run smoothly for over twenty years without major scandals.
One veteran floor manager in Los Angeles told reporters, “We follow every rule on the books. This feels like someone moved the goalposts after the game already started.”
Jobs and Cities on the Line
California is home to about 85 licensed cardrooms that employ around 32,000 people directly. Dealers, security staff, cooks, and cleaners all face an uncertain future.
Here are some of the hardest-hit areas:
- Commerce Casino – over 2,500 workers
- Hollywood Park Casino – around 1,800 employees
- Bicycle Hotel & Casino – roughly 1,700 staff
- Hawaiian Gardens Casino – more than 1,200 jobs
Smaller cities lean even heavier on the tax money. One city manager said losing cardroom revenue would force cuts to youth programs and road repairs starting next fiscal year.
Cardrooms Promise a Fight
Industry leaders vow to challenge the rules in court and push for emergency legislation in Sacramento. They argue regulators skipped required public comment periods and ignored their own data showing massive harm.
The association warns that without quick action, many cardrooms will close for good before the rules even take effect in 2026.
Some operators already talk about layoffs starting this summer to prepare for the worst.
The battle lines are now drawn between tribal gaming interests that back the crackdown and cardrooms that say they just want to keep operating under the rules they have followed for generations.
This fight will ripple far beyond the felt tables. It touches city budgets, family paychecks, and the future of gambling in the nation’s most populous state. Thousands of Californians now wait to see if lawmakers step in or let one of the state’s oldest gaming sectors get cut in half.
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