The Nevada Senate has passed a pair of bills, both of which advance the cause of legal online poker in the US.

First, and perhaps most importantly, the group has passed a law which, according to the Las Vegas Sun, will “[direct] the state Gaming Commission to adopt regulations by January 2012 that permit Internet poker, a bill strongly supported by the gaming industry.”

While this is a strong step forward, there is still room for concern. In order for this law to take effect, Congress must first pass legislation legalizing online poker within American borders. There would be limitations as to which venues would be able to offer the service. In Washoe County, for example, “online poker would be allowed in hotels with at least 120 rooms, a 24-hour restaurant and at least 1,600 slot machines, 40 table games and a sports books.”

The other piece of legislation involves the mobile side of the technological frontier. The Nevada Senate has also approved Assembly Bill 294, a law which would allow casino patrons to gamble on their mobile devices. Customers would need to be within the casino grounds in order to take advantage of this feature.

This brings to light another change in attitude. While Nevada law currently states that gambling must be limited to certain areas within a casino, this bill would extend coverage to “any area of an establishment.”

In order to protect against underage gamblers, players would regularly be asked to enter a four-digit PIN code. The legislation will return to the Nevada Assembly for “agreement on the licensing of independent agents,” according to iGaming Business.