For nearly 30 years, new cardrooms in California were banned. Now, thanks to a deadlocked vote in the state’s legislature, the moratorium has come to an end.

The state’s Bureau of Gambling Control (BGC) is accepting applications for new cardrooms, a move that will no doubt provide a significant boost to a niche economy that’s been around for more than 150 years.

The state currently has 72 card rooms, with many of them located in Los Angeles, the Central Coast, the Bay Area, and the Central Valley.

This past year, lawmakers voted on a bill that would extend the cardroom moratorium past 2023. The vote ended in a deadlock: 3-3. As a result, the moratorium ended.