TEXAS HOLDEM ONLINE POKER

State Police plan to reissue a request for proposals to build a new central computer to monitor Texas Holdem video poker machines around the state next month.

Louisiana has been using the same central computer system since 1992 when video poker first appeared legally in the state. The computer is outdated and the contract with the company that runs the system, International Game Technology of Reno, Nev., expires next month, though IGT has said it will keep the system going until a new one is in place.

The central computer allows State Police to monitor the amount of money that goes into the state's 14,134 machines and ensure no one is stealing.

A new system would enhance the State Police's monitoring capabilities and would create new Texas Holdem video poker options for the state, but video poker operators fear a new system would render many of their machines obsolete. More than 80 percent of Texas Holdem video poker machines in the state are too old to communicate with modern computers. A new video poker system would cost about $10,000 for the machine and another $1,500 for hardware to connect to the central system.

State Police released an initial request for proposals Feb. 5, but because of the large number of questions posed by prospective bidders, the police decided to reissue the request. The reissue allows State Police to add a performance bond to the proposal, which would ensure that the state would receive financial compensation if the company that wins the contract doesn't deliver a product that works. State Police also wanted to see what happened to related bills in the Legislature, said Norbert Courville, State Police technical support supervisor.

House Bill 1425 would allow State Police to sign a ten-year contract for a central system instead of a five-year contract, which may make system designers and Texas Holdem video poker operators feel that their investments were worthwhile. That bill, sponsored by Rep. Danny Martiny, R-Kenner, has passed the House, and has been assigned to the Committee on Administration of Criminal Justice in the Senate.

A second bill, HB 1221, would allow video poker devices not located at truck stops to be hooked into a central progressive jackpot system that creates bigger payouts. That bill, sponsored by Rep. Taylor Townsend, D-Natchitoches, has not gotten out of the House.