WASHINGTON—The House Judiciary Committee is poised to take up legislation to ban illegal gambling over the Internet, wireless and other technologies, following passage of a bill by a subcommittee.
“Gambling on the Internet has become an extremely lucrative business,” said Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.), sponsor of the measure and chairman of the House Judiciary subcommittee on crime. “Numerous studies have charted the explosive growth of this industry, both by the increases in gambling Web sites available and via industry revenues. Internet gambling is now estimated to be a $12 billion industry, with approximately $6 billion coming from bettors based in the U.S. It has been reported that there are as many as 2,300 gambling sites.”
“The Internet Gambling Prohibition Act” attempts to crack down on illegal gambling by updating the Wire Act to cover all forms of interstate gambling and new technologies. Under current federal law, it is unclear whether using the Internet to operate a gambling business is illegal. The Wire Act, which prohibits gambling over telephone wires, was written long before the invention of the Internet and explosion of the cell phone industry. The Goodlatte bill amends the Wire Act to make clear that prohibitions include illegal gambling via the Internet and other new technologies. Gambling is illegal in the United States unless regulated by states.
Federal law enforcement officials have testified Internet gambling is a vehicle for money laundering activities, and can be exploited by terrorists for that purpose.
“Virtual betting parlors have attempted to avoid the application of United States law by locating themselves offshore and out of our jurisdictional reach. These offshore, fly-by-night Internet gambling operators are unlicensed, untaxed and unregulated and are sucking billions of dollars out of the United States,” Goodlatte said.
