Wed, 03/16/2011 – 22:50 – PokerPages Staff

The Pokers Players Alliance is set to hold a ‘Poker Lobbying Day’ outside the capitol building in the state of Washington later this week.

The PPA, who lobby for the rights of poker players across the United States, will lead a rally at a state capitol building on Thursday.

PPA Executive Director John Pappas confirmed that over 40 PPA members will attend the rally and that those members would meet with lawmakers.

“People are coming from all around the state to lobby the legislature over the law in the books that criminalizes playing poker over the net. We are going to ask that they repeal that law.”

It has nearly been five years since a law was passed which criminalized online poker in Washington.

The world’s biggest online poker site, PokerStars, took the decision to stop serving customers in the state last year after the law was upheld at the Washington Supreme Court.

Pappas is hopeful that the situation will change in the near future though he admitted he admitted the PPA are unlikely to lobby a new bill this year.

“This is our first foray into some intensive lobbying in Washington state. We do not expect a change in the law this year.”

“We are using this opportunity as a baseline-education process to build up for a possible introduction of legislation to be taken up during the next legislative session.”