CONGRESS HITS WEB GAMBLING
The House Judiciary Committee voted 18-12 to pass the "Combatting Illegal Gambling Reform and Modernization Act" in June. HR 3215 would prohibit gambling businesses from operating Web sites if they are located in a state or nation other than that of the bettor.
Gambling Web sites would be required to verify that the person placing the bets is not a minor and resides in the same state as their business, according to the legislation. Gambling enterprises located on Native-American tribal lands that are licensed for gambling under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act would be exempt.
Rep. Robert Goodlatte (R-Va.) introduced the bill last year, which updates the 40-year-old Interstate Wire Act to encompass online lotteries and other games of chance.
In Mr. Goodlatte’ opinion Illegal gambling on the Internet has expanded into a lucrative business that drains billions of dollars out of the U.S. economy every year and costs tens of thousands of jobs. Illegal gambling sites evade existing gambling laws by operating off shore, providing a nearly undetectable harbor for criminal enterprises. Hundreds of gambling sites operate on the Internet to which teenagers can gain access. Restricting this access to Internet gambling is essential to reduce the risk of exposure to gambling, especially for young children, warned experts at a Federal Trade Commission (FTC) briefing on online gambling held in June on Capitol Hill. Responding to the same issue, the House Judiciary Committee passed a bill (HR 3215) to combat illegal gambling on the Internet in June (see box). Adolescents use the Internet more than any other age group, and recent studies have found that about 3 percent of adolescents and 8 percent of college students have gambled on the Internet, according to the National Council on Problem Gambling. The term "problem gambling" refers to pathological gambling and gambling-related problems.
In addition, regular or heavy Internet users are more likely to participate in Internet gambling than infrequent users, said Marianne Guschwan, M.D., chair of the APA Committee on Treatment Services for Patients with Addictive Disorders, at the FTC briefing.
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) would be charged with enforcing the law. Violators could be fined and or imprisoned for up to five years. The FCC could obtain a court order against banks and credit-card companies to force them to stop working with illegal gambling enterprises that accept bets across state or national lines, the legislation says. Web gambling sites could also be ordered to stop working with illegal gambling enterprises and remove banner advertisements of illegal online gambling sites. As of July 10 the bill had 155 cosponsors in the House, which is short of the 218 votes needed to pass the House.