Campbell is 70th Congressman to Sponsor Online Gambling BillDate published: 10 August 2010
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At the end of July, Republican John Campbell from California became a co-sponsor of H.R. 2267 and in so doing became the seventieth co-sponsor of the bill that millions of American online gambling fans are hoping will end the online gambling ban. Broadly, H.R. 2267, the Internet Gambling Regulation, Consumer Protection, and Enforcement Act is aimed at forming a U.S. licensing structure for operators, making online gambling taxable, protecting against fraud and combating problem gamblers. What's encouraging is that it has garnered support from both Democratic and Republican lawmakers. However, even if it is passed by the House, the bill must still be rubber stamped by the U.S. Senate before the current online gambling ban can be reversed. Since October 2006, when Congress voted in the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) that effectively resulted in an 21st century 'online gambling prohibition', Representative Barney Frank has continued his fight to see the ban overturned. And despite many setbacks over the last few years, it seems that Frank now has a greater chance than ever of getting UIGEA repealed which, after it was signed into law by the President George W. Bush in 2006, only came into effect earlier this year. While UIGEA does not make it illegal for Americans to gamble online, it does make it illegal for U.S. banks, financial institutions and credit card companies to process online gambling-related payments, although this has proved difficult to enforce in practice. |
