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Message: [QUOTE="nrogers5k, post: 7174410, member: 1054119"] Hello- I am writing this as a poker enthusiast playing online poker in California. Our ability to play is under threat due to Bill AB831 currently working its way through the state legislature. I currently sits with the appropriations committee. To make this email I will paste a draft letter along with the contact emails you should send it to. Please take a moment and join me to keep them from infringing on our civil liberties. As an added step you can email your state Senator you can find their email easily online. Dear Appropriations Committee, I hope this message finds you well. I am writing to respectfully urge you to oppose Assembly Bill 831. As a resident of (Your City), I share your commitment to fairness and responsible oversight in the digital space—but I believe this bill, as currently written, threatens both civil liberties and legitimate online communities. I am part of a public online forum with over 10,000 members, many of whom reside here in California. Our community is dedicated to poker theory, strategy, and skill development, and serves as a hub for education, analysis, and healthy competition—not gambling. AB 831’s vague and sweeping definitions—particularly regarding “dual currency systems” and “simulated gambling”—risk wrongly targeting platforms like ours that have no real-money gaming component. Prominent organizations such as the Social & Promotional Games Association (SPGA), the Social Gaming Leadership Alliance (SGLA), and ACLU California Action have all raised serious concerns that AB 831 could criminalize entirely lawful and educational platforms due to its overly broad language. The ACLU has even warned that the bill could “unintentionally sweep in protected speech” and disproportionately affect communities that have nothing to do with illegal gaming. Our forum is a community of hobbyists and thinkers—not operators or gamblers. Yet under AB 831, platforms like ours could be exposed to legal risk simply for discussing topics related to gaming. That’s not good policy—it’s overreach. I respectfully urge you to vote NO on AB 831 or, at minimum, support amending the bill into a two-year measure so that stakeholders, technologists, civil liberties experts, and online community leaders can weigh in. With clearer definitions and more targeted enforcement provisions, California can better address bad actors—without undermining innocent communities and First Amendment rights. Thank you for your service and for standing up for fairness, innovation, and civil liberties in California. Sincerely, (Your Name) email address: [email]Briana.Diaz@sen.ca.gov[/email], [email]Jennifer.Douglas@sen.ca.gov[/email], [email]senator.caballero@senate.ca.gov[/email], [email]senator.seyarto@senate.ca.gov[/email], [email]Mark.McKenzie@sen.ca.gov[/email], [email]ashley.ames@sen.ca.gov[/email], [email]Liah.Burnley@sen.ca.gov[/email], [email]Lenin.DelCastillo@sen.ca.gov[/email], [email]Robert.Ingenito@sen.ca.gov[/email], [email]Agnes.Lee@sen.ca.gov[/email], [email]Janelle.Miyashiro@sen.ca.gov[/email] Your efforts are appreciated, Regards, Nick Rogers [/QUOTE]

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