Congress Works On Net Gambling Crackdown
A House panel voted Thursday to crack down on the $12 billion Internet gambling industry by applying federal prohibitions to games like online poker, blackjack and roulette. The legislation would amend the 1961 Federal Wire Wager Act to explicitly prohibit online gambling.
It also would outlaw electronic transmission of funds to pay for gambling bets, give law enforcement agencies authority to block such money transfers, and increase penalties for violation of the law. Although the Justice Department has taken the position that the Wire Act already prohibits online gambling in the U.S., there is disagreement about that.
Most of as many as 2,300 online gambling sites in existence are overseas. The bill approved by the Judiciary Committee would "prevent offshore fly-by-night gambling businesses from violating the laws of all states," said sponsor Bob Goodlatte, R-Va. He said spending on the sites had skyrocketed. But at least half of the billions of dollars spent on online gambling each year is thought to come from U. S. bettors, and some companies in this country want to get in on the action. The American Gaming Association, the industry's largest lobby, has opposed online gambling in the past but last month backed a study of the feasibility of regulating it.
May 31, 2006
Posted By Skip Davis
Staff Editor, CasinoGamblingWeb.com
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