Frank Picks Up Sixty-Third Co-Sponsor For Online Gambling Bill

The talks regarding Representative Barney Frank's online gambling legislation proposal are going to heat up in the next couple of months, and Frank picked up another supporter on Monday. Rep. Anthony D. Weiner became the latest co-sponsor.

Weiner represents New York's 9th District, and he became the sixty-third co-sponsor of the Frank Bill. With the attention of legislators mostly being paid to the economy, the online gambling issue has been put on the back-burner for much of the first year of President Obama's term.

In 2006, a then-heavy Republican Congress pushed through the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act. The law made it illegal for financial institutions to process payments to and from online gambling sites.

Since the law was put in place, there has been a backlash not only from people in the US, but also from other countries. The European Commission, which governs the European Union, has found the US to be in violations of trade agreements with the UIGEA. The Commission has given the US a grace period to correct their flawed law, but as of yet, President Obama's administration has not responded.

If the US does not comply, the Commission's next move would be to bring a case against the US to the World Trade Organization. If found to be in violation, the US could face sanctions from the WTO.

Rep. Frank is trying to avoid that route by offering up his proposed legislation. The legislation, if passed, would bring a regulated Internet gambling industry to the US. Frank has maintained all along that the US should allow their residents the freedom to gamble online if they so choose.

November 18, 2009
Posted By Larry Rutherford
Staff Editor, CasinoGamblingWeb.com
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