House Internet Gambling Bill Misses the Mark

The approach taken by the House of Representatives to ban U.S. based financial institutions from processing online gambling transactions misses the mark in 3 ways: It is bogged down with unintended consequences, fails to acknowledge that adults must be responsible for their own poor decisions, and would fail even to end Internet betting.

House Resolution 4411 passed 317-93, but the Senate has shown little interest in taking up the measure this year. Odds are it will die without becoming law. Even President George W. Bush has expressed his dissatisfaction will the new bill.

A 1961 federal law prohibits the use of "wires" to handle gambling transactions. This was designed to stop sportsbooks from taking bets over the phone.

With the onset of Internet gambling, not to mention uncertainty over whether the Federal Wire Act covers Internet dealings, major credit-card issuers, most domestic banks and even PayPal, the electronic payment center, chose to not process any transactions directed to online casinos.

Even so, offshore gambling sites could generate an estimated $15 billion in revenues worldwide this year, up from $3 billion in 2001. And half the current revenues come from the United States. Online bettors simply use PayPal-like services that are based outside U.S. territory.

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July 22, 2006
Posted By Larry Rutherford
Staff Editor, CasinoGamblingWeb.com    Previous Page | Internet Gambling | Top Online Casinos | Submit News!