Massachusetts State Representative Dan Winslow recently filed an amendment to an land-based gambling bill currently under consideration before the state congress that would make online poker in the state legal.

The Massachusetts state congress is currently considering a bill the expand its land-based casino gambling projects. Last Friday, September 9, 2011, Dan Winslow, a Republican state representative from Norfolk, MA, added a new provision to the bill that, if it is passed, will make online poker in the state legal.

Winslow says passage of his amendment will create a huge revenue stream increase for the state, with a 10% rake being taken from each pot, with 70% of that rake going directly to the state of Massachusetts.

States like California, Florida, Hawaii, New Jersey and Nevada have all passed similar proposals, but none of them have since been implemented yet. One thing that distinguished the Winslow Amendment from those passed (or under consideration( in other states is that it doesn’t restrict permission for online poker playing (and online gambling in other games, for that matter) to Massachusetts state residents, what’s known as intrastate gambling. It extends the invitation to players from around the world to play online poker and online casino games hosted in the state of Massachusetts with the state’s coffers reaping the rewards.

Winslow and his amendment face opposition from those like Democratic state Treasurer Steven Grossman who says the proposal is irresponsible and reckless.

If Winslow’s amendment is passed then the Massachusetts Gaming Commission would be ordered to develop a model of what regulations and legislation to implement this plan would look like.