Ky Gambling Tax

He said the tax gambling change would cost the state about $3.2 million. Like the House version, the Senate's taxation plan exempts taxation on sales of admissions by all non-profit organizations. Download FISCAL FACT No. 418: Kentucky Tax Plan Fails to Improve Bluegrass State's Tax Competitiveness Key Findings Despite some positive elements, Governor Beshear's tax proposal as a whole includes several problematic components and neglects basic reforms to modernize the state's tax code. The plan includes a significant reduction of Kentucky's income tax rates accompanied with.

1. Ky Gambling Age
2. Ky Gambling Casinos

Gambling Income Tax Requirements for Nonresidents. Nonresidents can usually report income that is 'effectively connected' with a U.S. Business on Form 1040NR-EZ. Gambling winnings, however, are considered to be 'not effectively connected' and must generally be reported on Form 1040NR. Such income is generally taxed at a flat rate of 30%. Although the tax changes brought about by HB 487, Kentucky's sweeping tax reform bill, were first enacted on Apr. 27, 2018, many horseplayers and tax professionals are just now becoming aware of.

• Year Kentucky Regulated Gambling: Horseracing (1783), Lottery (1988), Historical Racing (2010)
• Estimated Tax Revenue from Gambling: unknown
• Estimated Gambling Revenue: unknown
• Kentucky Gambling Age: 18
• Smoking ban: Kentucky does not have a smoking ban
• Kentucky Online gambling: Off-track betting

Kentucky is considered the home of horse racing in the U.S. The Kentucky Derby, one of the best-known horse races in the world, is hosted at Churchill Downs in the state. Kentucky was home to the first known horse race in the country in 1783. The state has always accepted that its residents and tourists visit Bluegrass Country to take in the races and wager a few dollars.

While gambling on horses has always been embraced, it has not been quick to expand into Kentucky casinos. There is a state lottery in Kentucky. Instant racing, which are slot machines that display winning symbols based on past races, started appearing at racetracks earlier this decade. Kentucky racetracks may also offer off-track betting. Charities can offer games of chance with limited prizes and a number of events.

Paying Gambling Taxes in Kentucky

OnlineUnitedStatesCasinos has gathered everything you need to know about paying taxes on your gambling winnings straight from a Certified Public Accountant. Find out how you can report your gambling income to the IRS with our in-depth Gambling Taxes Guide. Learn which forms you have to fill out, how to report your winnings, as well as deduct losses.

Kentucky Casinos Map & Guide of Racetracks

• Ellis Park – Henderson
• Red Mile – Lexington

• Number of B&M Casinos: 0
• Number of Poker Rooms: 0
• Number of Indian Casinos: 0

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Types of Kentucky Online Gambling

The only form of legal Kentucky online gambling is off-track betting on horses. These wagers may be placed on websites and apps belonging to companies like TVG, Twinspires, and BetAmerica. TwinSpires is based in Kentucky. It is owned by Churchill Downs.

Daily fantasy sites claim legality under Kentucky's skill gaming laws. While the state attorney general and its legislature have not addressed daily fantasy sports, some sour gamblers have filed lawsuits against the companies in an attempt to recover losses through qui tam laws. These cases are still in the court system.

Online poker, casino, and sports betting sites are not legal in Kentucky. The state has filed its own qui tam lawsuits to recover losses for the state's residents. One judgment against PokerStars compelled the site to pay Kentucky $870 million. That case is under appeal. The state also filed a lawsuit in an attempt to seize 141 domain names from gambling sites.

Types of Live Kentucky Gambling

• Slots: No
• Blackjack: No
• Poker: No
• Craps/Roulette: No
• Horses: Yes
• Lottery: Yes

There are three types of live Kentucky gambling available to residents. A state lottery sells scratch-off and lotto tickets. This includes interstate drawings. Popular games include Lucky for Life, Pick 3, Pick 4, 5 Card Cash, Powerball, and Mega Millions.

There are six Kentucky racetracks. All offer horse tracks. Greyhound racing is not legal in Kentucky. All six tracks offer off-track betting on horses.

Kentucky Downs, Ellis Park, and Red Mile offer a controversial form of gambling that is working its way through the court system. These two tracks offer instant racing machines. These devices are programmed with thousands of past horse races. Players put cash into the machine and make a wager. The machine pulls one of these historical races and displays the reels on the device to match a payout similar to what the event would have paid. These are described as historical racing machines. Some consider them to be slot machines because that is exactly how they look and feel. The only difference is how the position of the reels is determined.

There are currently no Kentucky casinos operating at the moment. There is legislation that racetracks are trying to pass so that they can legally offer more popular electronic casino games, like electronic blackjack and roulette. We may see the racetracks and Kentucky casinos legislation combine and form 'racinos' that are already popular in other states.

Kentucky Gambling Laws

Kentucky gambling laws define gambling as,

'staking or risking something of value on the outcome of a contest, game, gaming scheme, or gaming device which is based upon an element of chance, in accord with an agreement or understanding that someone will receive something of value in the event of a certain outcome.'

It only exempts the state lottery, horse racing, and arguably, instant racing machines. Charities may operate bingo games and raffles.

Promoting gambling is a Class A misdemeanor or Class D felony, depending on the charges. The minimum gambling age in Kentucky is 18 years for lottery, racing, and instant racing bettors.

Where to Gamble in Kentucky

There are more than 1,000 lottery retailers in Kentucky. There are also dozens of charitable organizations that offer bingo and similar games to raise funds for nonprofit operations.

Outside of these options, there are only six Kentucky racetracks to gamble at. You might consider these racetracks to be Kentucky casinos, as they already have permission to offer racing machines, which are very similar to slot machines. This may be the start of new Kentucky gambling legislation.

You can look for the specific racetrack you want to wager at on our Kentucky casinos map and guide located above.

History of Kentucky Gambling

Horse racing dates back to 1783 in Kentucky. That is nine years before it became a state. Salsa casino santiago centro historico. The first organized racing venue was created in Louisville. It was called Elm Tree Gardens. Racing spread to Lexington in 1787 where horses competed in The Commons. Churchill Downs, home of the Kentucky Derby, opened in 1883.

Kentucky did not regulate horse racing like it does today in its early years. It was simply impossible to control pari-mutuel pools and organize the tracks and horses centuries ago. It took until the early 1900's for the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission to be created. Tracks have come and gone over the years. There are five in operation today. This makes Kentucky one of the most thriving states when it comes to horseracing.

The first legal lottery in Kentucky was held in 1792. It occurred in an attempt to fundraise for a church in Lexington. The Kentucky Lottery that exists today was created through a November 1988 constitutional referendum. The first ticket was sold in April 1989. The Kentucky Lottery sells scratch-off and lotto tickets.

The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission modified its regulations to permit instant racing machines in 2010. These games mimic slot machines. The devices display slot symbols in a pattern to show the payout of a horse race based in the past. The exact race is never known. The Kentucky Supreme Court ruled that the racing commission had the authority to legalize these games. Anti-gambling groups are still fighting instant racing in the courts. Kentucky Downs, Ellis Park, and Red Mile offer instant racing, and can be considered to be the only Kentucky casinos operating today.

Kentucky has been the home of two disputes with offshore online gambling sites. In 2008, Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear's office initiated a lawsuit in an attempt to seize 141 domain names related to gambling. Major sites were included in the list. Big names like PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker, Absolute Poker, DoylesRoom and Cake Poker were among them. The case dragged out until 2014 when a state appeals court essentially quashed it. This case was the beginning of offshore gaming sites moving to domains that do not use the .com extension. Kentucky received a small settlement related to Black Friday due to this case before it ultimately failed.

Kentucky is also the venue where PokerStars was sued for $290 million for accepting players in the state. Government officials alleged that PokerStars operated illegally and should be compelled to pay the state for its residents' gambling losses under qui tam laws. The alleged events occurred from 2006 to 2011.

These loss recovery laws permit anybody to recover illegal gambling losses if the loser does not act within six months. A lower court awarded the $290 million as well as treble damages, making the total judgment $870 million. The case is currently under appeal

PokerStars was owned by Rational Group at the time the lawsuit is based. It has since been acquired by Amaya Gaming. The new owners of PokerStars have vowed to fight the case or pursue the former owners if it ultimately loses the legal battle.

Ky Gambling Age

Kentucky Casinos & Gambling FAQ

Yes. Kentucky is considered the home of the horse racing industry in the country.

Yes. There are six race books in Kentucky.

The only form of online betting legal in Kentucky is off-track horse racing.

No, only horse racing.

No, the closest thing to casinos in the state is instant racing machines. There are casinos in West Virginia, Ohio, Indiana and Illinois.

The minimum Kentucky gambling age is 18 years for all legal forms of gambling, including lottery and racing bets.

Yes, the Kentucky Lottery sells scratch-off and lotto tickets.

Lottery sales are not permitted over the Internet.

None of these types of websites are licensed to operate in Kentucky.

There is currently a court battle over alleged illegal online gambling where a lower court ruled PokerStars owes Kentucky $870 million. It is currently under appeal.

Gambling is practically a state tradition in Kentucky, and poker has also played a big role in the history of the Bourbon State. Poker used to be the stuff of riverboats and underground clubs, but today's Kentucky poker scene is more about live casinos and online poker. Now that the Internet is practically everywhere in the state, poker can be – and is – everywhere too.

Thanks to the aggressive position taken by some in the government on the issue of gambling online in Kentucky, not all online poker rooms take players from the state of Kentucky. That isn't the same as saying no poker rooms will accept Kentucky sign ups. There are still a multitude of online poker sites where Kentuckians can play for real money.

This leads to plenty of questions about how online poker works, whether you can play poker online from Kentucky and the general climate for gambling in the state – questions answered in our Online Poker Player's Guide to Kentucky.

Kentucky Poker & Gambling Laws Summarized

Latest Online Poker Updates for Kentucky

Most analysts have considered Kentucky as one of the states least likely to consider online poker regulation in the past, but that all changed with developments in late 2018.

As Kentucky began to explore the possibility of legalizing sports betting in the state, the Poker Alliance took the opportunity to attend a hearingabout it and relay the message that online gambling would be a solid pairing with sports betting to add revenue to the state's coffers.

In late November, Kentucky Attorney General Andy Beshear took that message to heart and proposed that lawmakers consider a new solutionto a longstanding problem with the funding of the state's pension systems. He asked lawmakers to consider a new revenue stream that doesn't raise taxes for Kentuckians. 'The answer is simple,' he stated in his letter to lawmakers, 'expanded gaming including casino, fantasy sports, and sports gaming, as well as preparing for the eventual legalization of online poker.' All eyes will be on the legislature in early 2019 to see if any online gambling proposals are put forward for consideration.

Weeks later, the Kentucky Court of Appeals handed down a ruling in a case between the Commonwealth of Kentucky and PokerStars that had been ongoing since 2008. Kentucky's then-Governor Steve Beshear (Andy Beshear's father) obtained legal permission to seize 141 online gambling domains at that time, including PokerStars, and the case continued as Kentucky demanded money from PokerStars for taking rake from losing players located in Kentucky from 2008 to 2011 when PokerStars left the US market. PokerStars appealed the case up to the Court of Appeals, and in December 2018, that court ruled in favor of PokerStars and reversed the original $870 million judgement of the Franklin Circuit Court. The state may appeal the case to the Kentucky Supreme Court in 2019, but as it stands, PokerStars can claim victory in the case.

In late November, Kentucky Attorney General Andy Beshear took that message to heart and proposed that lawmakers consider a new solution to a longstanding problem with the funding of the state's pension systems. He asked lawmakers to consider a new revenue stream that doesn't raise taxes for Kentuckians. 'The answer is simple,' he stated in his letter to lawmakers, 'expanded gaming including casino, fantasy sports, and sports gaming, as well as preparing for the eventual legalization of online poker.' All eyes will be on the legislature in early 2019 to see if any online gambling proposals are put forward for consideration.

As requested by AG Beshear in late 2018, lawmakers introduced a couple of bills to expand gambling in Kentucky. In early February, HB.190 was put forth to establish casinos in the state and expand gambling at horse tracks, and HB.175 proposed sports wagering, fantasy sports contests (DFS), and online poker. The latter was supported by 15 sponsors from both political parties.

• Number of B&M Casinos: 0
• Number of Poker Rooms: 0
• Number of Indian Casinos: 0

Best Online Casinos for Players in Kentucky

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• • Quick USA Payouts, Credit Cards Accepted
  • Great Selection of Slots & Table Games
  • Legit & Reputable Mobile Friendly Casino

  Compatible with:

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  • mobile
• • Uses the Microgaming Software
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• • Safe and Trustworthy Australian Casino
  • Multiple Daily Deposit Deals
  • 100s of Pokies, Slots, and Table Games

  Compatible with:

  • windows
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Types of Kentucky Online Gambling

The only form of legal Kentucky online gambling is off-track betting on horses. These wagers may be placed on websites and apps belonging to companies like TVG, Twinspires, and BetAmerica. TwinSpires is based in Kentucky. It is owned by Churchill Downs.

Daily fantasy sites claim legality under Kentucky's skill gaming laws. While the state attorney general and its legislature have not addressed daily fantasy sports, some sour gamblers have filed lawsuits against the companies in an attempt to recover losses through qui tam laws. These cases are still in the court system.

Online poker, casino, and sports betting sites are not legal in Kentucky. The state has filed its own qui tam lawsuits to recover losses for the state's residents. One judgment against PokerStars compelled the site to pay Kentucky $870 million. That case is under appeal. The state also filed a lawsuit in an attempt to seize 141 domain names from gambling sites.

Types of Live Kentucky Gambling

• Slots: No
• Blackjack: No
• Poker: No
• Craps/Roulette: No
• Horses: Yes
• Lottery: Yes

There are three types of live Kentucky gambling available to residents. A state lottery sells scratch-off and lotto tickets. This includes interstate drawings. Popular games include Lucky for Life, Pick 3, Pick 4, 5 Card Cash, Powerball, and Mega Millions.

There are six Kentucky racetracks. All offer horse tracks. Greyhound racing is not legal in Kentucky. All six tracks offer off-track betting on horses.

Kentucky Downs, Ellis Park, and Red Mile offer a controversial form of gambling that is working its way through the court system. These two tracks offer instant racing machines. These devices are programmed with thousands of past horse races. Players put cash into the machine and make a wager. The machine pulls one of these historical races and displays the reels on the device to match a payout similar to what the event would have paid. These are described as historical racing machines. Some consider them to be slot machines because that is exactly how they look and feel. The only difference is how the position of the reels is determined.

There are currently no Kentucky casinos operating at the moment. There is legislation that racetracks are trying to pass so that they can legally offer more popular electronic casino games, like electronic blackjack and roulette. We may see the racetracks and Kentucky casinos legislation combine and form 'racinos' that are already popular in other states.

Kentucky Gambling Laws

Kentucky gambling laws define gambling as,

'staking or risking something of value on the outcome of a contest, game, gaming scheme, or gaming device which is based upon an element of chance, in accord with an agreement or understanding that someone will receive something of value in the event of a certain outcome.'

It only exempts the state lottery, horse racing, and arguably, instant racing machines. Charities may operate bingo games and raffles.

Promoting gambling is a Class A misdemeanor or Class D felony, depending on the charges. The minimum gambling age in Kentucky is 18 years for lottery, racing, and instant racing bettors.

Where to Gamble in Kentucky

There are more than 1,000 lottery retailers in Kentucky. There are also dozens of charitable organizations that offer bingo and similar games to raise funds for nonprofit operations.

Outside of these options, there are only six Kentucky racetracks to gamble at. You might consider these racetracks to be Kentucky casinos, as they already have permission to offer racing machines, which are very similar to slot machines. This may be the start of new Kentucky gambling legislation.

You can look for the specific racetrack you want to wager at on our Kentucky casinos map and guide located above.

History of Kentucky Gambling

Horse racing dates back to 1783 in Kentucky. That is nine years before it became a state. Salsa casino santiago centro historico. The first organized racing venue was created in Louisville. It was called Elm Tree Gardens. Racing spread to Lexington in 1787 where horses competed in The Commons. Churchill Downs, home of the Kentucky Derby, opened in 1883.

Kentucky did not regulate horse racing like it does today in its early years. It was simply impossible to control pari-mutuel pools and organize the tracks and horses centuries ago. It took until the early 1900's for the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission to be created. Tracks have come and gone over the years. There are five in operation today. This makes Kentucky one of the most thriving states when it comes to horseracing.

The first legal lottery in Kentucky was held in 1792. It occurred in an attempt to fundraise for a church in Lexington. The Kentucky Lottery that exists today was created through a November 1988 constitutional referendum. The first ticket was sold in April 1989. The Kentucky Lottery sells scratch-off and lotto tickets.

The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission modified its regulations to permit instant racing machines in 2010. These games mimic slot machines. The devices display slot symbols in a pattern to show the payout of a horse race based in the past. The exact race is never known. The Kentucky Supreme Court ruled that the racing commission had the authority to legalize these games. Anti-gambling groups are still fighting instant racing in the courts. Kentucky Downs, Ellis Park, and Red Mile offer instant racing, and can be considered to be the only Kentucky casinos operating today.

Kentucky has been the home of two disputes with offshore online gambling sites. In 2008, Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear's office initiated a lawsuit in an attempt to seize 141 domain names related to gambling. Major sites were included in the list. Big names like PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker, Absolute Poker, DoylesRoom and Cake Poker were among them. The case dragged out until 2014 when a state appeals court essentially quashed it. This case was the beginning of offshore gaming sites moving to domains that do not use the .com extension. Kentucky received a small settlement related to Black Friday due to this case before it ultimately failed.

Kentucky is also the venue where PokerStars was sued for $290 million for accepting players in the state. Government officials alleged that PokerStars operated illegally and should be compelled to pay the state for its residents' gambling losses under qui tam laws. The alleged events occurred from 2006 to 2011.

These loss recovery laws permit anybody to recover illegal gambling losses if the loser does not act within six months. A lower court awarded the $290 million as well as treble damages, making the total judgment $870 million. The case is currently under appeal

PokerStars was owned by Rational Group at the time the lawsuit is based. It has since been acquired by Amaya Gaming. The new owners of PokerStars have vowed to fight the case or pursue the former owners if it ultimately loses the legal battle.

Ky Gambling Age

Kentucky Casinos & Gambling FAQ

Yes. Kentucky is considered the home of the horse racing industry in the country.

Yes. There are six race books in Kentucky.

The only form of online betting legal in Kentucky is off-track horse racing.

No, only horse racing.

No, the closest thing to casinos in the state is instant racing machines. There are casinos in West Virginia, Ohio, Indiana and Illinois.

The minimum Kentucky gambling age is 18 years for all legal forms of gambling, including lottery and racing bets.

Yes, the Kentucky Lottery sells scratch-off and lotto tickets.

Lottery sales are not permitted over the Internet.

None of these types of websites are licensed to operate in Kentucky.

There is currently a court battle over alleged illegal online gambling where a lower court ruled PokerStars owes Kentucky $870 million. It is currently under appeal.

Gambling is practically a state tradition in Kentucky, and poker has also played a big role in the history of the Bourbon State. Poker used to be the stuff of riverboats and underground clubs, but today's Kentucky poker scene is more about live casinos and online poker. Now that the Internet is practically everywhere in the state, poker can be – and is – everywhere too.

Thanks to the aggressive position taken by some in the government on the issue of gambling online in Kentucky, not all online poker rooms take players from the state of Kentucky. That isn't the same as saying no poker rooms will accept Kentucky sign ups. There are still a multitude of online poker sites where Kentuckians can play for real money.

This leads to plenty of questions about how online poker works, whether you can play poker online from Kentucky and the general climate for gambling in the state – questions answered in our Online Poker Player's Guide to Kentucky.

Kentucky Poker & Gambling Laws Summarized

Latest Online Poker Updates for Kentucky

Most analysts have considered Kentucky as one of the states least likely to consider online poker regulation in the past, but that all changed with developments in late 2018.

As Kentucky began to explore the possibility of legalizing sports betting in the state, the Poker Alliance took the opportunity to attend a hearingabout it and relay the message that online gambling would be a solid pairing with sports betting to add revenue to the state's coffers.

In late November, Kentucky Attorney General Andy Beshear took that message to heart and proposed that lawmakers consider a new solutionto a longstanding problem with the funding of the state's pension systems. He asked lawmakers to consider a new revenue stream that doesn't raise taxes for Kentuckians. 'The answer is simple,' he stated in his letter to lawmakers, 'expanded gaming including casino, fantasy sports, and sports gaming, as well as preparing for the eventual legalization of online poker.' All eyes will be on the legislature in early 2019 to see if any online gambling proposals are put forward for consideration.

Weeks later, the Kentucky Court of Appeals handed down a ruling in a case between the Commonwealth of Kentucky and PokerStars that had been ongoing since 2008. Kentucky's then-Governor Steve Beshear (Andy Beshear's father) obtained legal permission to seize 141 online gambling domains at that time, including PokerStars, and the case continued as Kentucky demanded money from PokerStars for taking rake from losing players located in Kentucky from 2008 to 2011 when PokerStars left the US market. PokerStars appealed the case up to the Court of Appeals, and in December 2018, that court ruled in favor of PokerStars and reversed the original $870 million judgement of the Franklin Circuit Court. The state may appeal the case to the Kentucky Supreme Court in 2019, but as it stands, PokerStars can claim victory in the case.

In late November, Kentucky Attorney General Andy Beshear took that message to heart and proposed that lawmakers consider a new solution to a longstanding problem with the funding of the state's pension systems. He asked lawmakers to consider a new revenue stream that doesn't raise taxes for Kentuckians. 'The answer is simple,' he stated in his letter to lawmakers, 'expanded gaming including casino, fantasy sports, and sports gaming, as well as preparing for the eventual legalization of online poker.' All eyes will be on the legislature in early 2019 to see if any online gambling proposals are put forward for consideration.

As requested by AG Beshear in late 2018, lawmakers introduced a couple of bills to expand gambling in Kentucky. In early February, HB.190 was put forth to establish casinos in the state and expand gambling at horse tracks, and HB.175 proposed sports wagering, fantasy sports contests (DFS), and online poker. The latter was supported by 15 sponsors from both political parties.

Lead sponsor Kentucky Rep. Adam Koenig passed HB.175 through the House Licensing, Occupations, and Admin Regs Committee just weeks after its introduction, but it stalled there. The short legislative session ended after the last week of March, and with no further movement, the bill died. Similar legislation was pushed again in 2019, but the bill failed.

2020 Kentucky Sports Betting Bill?

Sports betting failed to make it through the Kentucky legislature, as well. However, it appears that support for legal sports betting is growing. Followers of Kentucky state politics expect to see a new KY sports betting bill at the start of 2020. If lawmakers respect the wishes of AG Beshear, sponsors of the legislation could add online poker to the bill.

Quite a bit changed in late 2019 and early 2020, however. Beshear won his campaign against the incumbent governor, and he won it on a platform that included expanded gambling for Kentucky. Newly-elected Governor Andy Beshear took office in December. At the same time, Rep. Koenig pre-filed a new bill for 2020 to legalize online poker, daily fantasy sports (DFS), and sports wagering at racetracks, sports venues, and via online and mobile devices.

That filing from Koenig turned into HB.137, a bill that passed the House Licensing, Occupations and Administrative Committee on January 15. It then went to the Rules Committee for consideration with four amendments thus far. As it stands, the bipartisan legislation has 38 sponsors, including Koenig.

In addition, Beshear submitted his state budget proposal in late January with the contents of HB.137 included in it, stating that the new gambling options would raise more than $37 million in taxes and fees in the next two years.

Online Poker in Kentucky

Our top online poker rooms for KY are a result of a good deal of research that focuses on a few core things: Whether the room is licensed, how generous the room is with promotions and bonuses, how easy the games are and how good the software is. After surveying dozens of rooms, we used those criteria to narrow the list down to these top online poker sites for players from Kentucky:

Is Online Poker Legal in Kentucky?

What does the law say about playing online poker in Kentucky? The first step to answering that question: review the Kentucky statutes here. The next step is to consult a lawyer if you still have questions. For those who just want to gain a basic understanding of Kentucky gambling law, here are some parts of the code that all poker players should be familiar with.

What does Kentucky law consider to be gambling? Gambling is defined in Section 528.010 as

'staking or risking something of value upon the outcome of a contest, game, gaming scheme, or gaming device which is based upon an element of chance, in accord with an agreement or understanding that someone will receive something of value in the event of a certain outcome.'

Ky Gambling Casinos

There's a phrase in Kentucky gambling law that could easily confuse at first glance – 'profiting from gambling activity' (Section 528.010) You might think this could also apply to simply winning at a poker game, but it's actually referring specifically to profiting from the operation of an illegal gambling activity (not just participation).

Kentucky is one of the few states that does not have an obvious criminal penalty for those who engage in illegal gambling exclusively as players.

With that said, Kentucky does have a number of steep penalties for those who 'advance gambling activity,' a broad category of actions that encompasses all 'conduct that materially aids any form of gambling activity' (Section 528.010).

While our cursory reading regarding poker law in Kentucky suggests that players do not face any criminal liability for playing real-money poker online, this guide should not be taken as a substitute for legal advice.

Kentucky Gambling Facts

By some accounts, Kentucky was home to Las Vegas before Vegas even existed. While a town of a different name – Newport – was the central attraction for gamblers, historians seem to agree that Kentucky was essentially the turn of the century equivalent to Las Vegas, complete with underworld crime figures, illicit profits and plenty of suspect activity. Colorful gangsters and their gambling hangouts are now the stuff of legend and nostalgia in Kentucky, but betting and wagering continues to play a vital role in the culture and economy of the state.

Regulated Gambling Options in Kentucky

Within the state borders of Kentucky, you're limited to the lottery, charitable gambling and – of course – pari-mutuel betting on horse races. After all, what fun would the Kentucky Derby be if everyone just watched the horses run? There are no commercial casinos in the state, but several site right on various borders in neighboring states such as Indiana and Ohio. While there has been some talk of bringing full-fledged commercial casinos (along with poker rooms) to Kentucky, repeated attempts to do so by the state legislature have failed, suggesting that the current lineup of regulated gambling options may well persist for years to come.

Does Kentucky Offer any Regulated Online Gambling?

Residents of Kentucky are able to legally place online bets on horse races through approved operators. Otherwise, Kentucky has yet to take any legislative action that would allow it to issue online poker licenses or regulate online poker (or any other type of online gambling) within the state.

All Poker and Gambling Laws by State

• The coronavirus pandemic stopped progress on a great many things. Every state in America now faces massive hurdles – many financial in nature – to overcome in the remaining months of 2020…and probably beyond. To say that online poker fell completely off the radar of lawmakers in Kentucky in the

  Read Full

• It was an unexpected surprise to see Kentucky on the list of states considering online poker in 2019. Few could imagine that a state in the middle of America would be the fifth or sixth state to legalize online poker, but imagine no more. The bill is no longer alive

  Read Full

• The Commonwealth of Kentucky took action this week on its sports betting legislation, which also bodes well for online poker and fantasy sports, both of which are included in the bill. As the bill has been alive for little more than two weeks, it has already garnered substantial bipartisan support

  Read Full

Kentucky Gambling Resources

Northern Kentucky Gambling Museum. Take a virtual trip on YouTube through this interesting and eclectic institution that houses artifacts from the state's past as a gambling hub.
Kentucky Council on Problem Gambling. Scholarly material concerning the gambling industry in Kentucky, along with a full suite of literature and tools aimed at reducing problem gambling in the state.
Kentucky.com. Best source for local news and developments related to gambling and similar topics. Follow legislation and other issues shaping the future of the gambling industry in Kentucky.

Sources & Citations For This Article on Kentucky Online Poker