U.S. ONLINE GAMBLING LEGALISATION BILL RUNNING OUT
OF TIME...AGAIN!
18 September 2009
Congress's preoccupation with financial
regulation and restructuring could leave the Frank bill
out in the cold this year
A rather depressing assessment by the Poker Players
Alliance is quoted in the respected poker magazine
Cardplayer this week, surmising that HR 2267-
Congressman Barney Frank's attempt to legalise and
regulate online gambling in the United States - could
again be pushed aside as Congress concentrates on the
financial issues resulting from the global economic
debacle.
The PPA opined that the bill was running
out of time and was unlikely to be progressed this
month, pushing it out to October 2009.
However, a
second and related bill, which would delay the
implementations of the Unlawful Internet Gambling
Enforcement Act for one year, could still stand a chance
of making it through a busy Congressional session, and
the PPA will put its weight behind that measure.
“The feedback we got (from a meeting with Representative
Frank’s staff this week) was that it’s unlikely that we
will hold a hearing in September; however, the door is
not closed on that,” PPA Executive Director John Pappas
told CardPlayer, speaking about H.R. 2267: The Internet
Gambling Regulation, Consumer Protection, and
Enforcement Act.
CardPlayer reports that with
that reality in place, the PPA is actively moving on
Frank’s other poker-related bill, H.R. 2266: Reasonable
Prudence in Regulation Act:, a piece of legislation that
would delay the full implementation of the UIGEA from
December 1, 2009 to December 1, 2010.
“Quite
honestly, the preference of the PPA is to move [H.R.
2266] sooner rather than later, and not wait until
October,” said Pappas. “We believe that the bill as it
stands right now faces some opposition if it’s a simple
delay. However, we’re working with the opposition to see
if a compromise could be drafted.”
“We’re hopeful
that if we can present to Chairman Frank a compromised
bill that could easily go through his committee without
too much fighting and debate — that we could get that
done possibly in this month,” said Pappas.
“Hopefully, we wouldn’t even have to have a hearing. It
could be a mark-up. A hearing is where you sit and talk
about the bill. A mark-up is where you actually vote on
it,” said Pappas. “The hope from our side is that if we
can craft a non-controversial compromise, it is
something that could be heard and voted on by the
committee this month.”
If it were approved by the
committee, the bill could be passed by the House as a
typical corrections bill.
Pappas told CardPlayer
that the PPA was disappointed to learn that Frank’s main
legislative attempt aimed at legalising online gambling
probably wouldn’t be the subject of a hearing until at
least October.
“Obviously, that’s not what we
wanted to hear, but it’s the reality of the Congress and
the reality of their schedule,” said Pappas. “What the
PPA is going to do is continue to push for it as soon as
possible, but in the meantime, build as much support for
the legislation both on the committee and off the
committee.”
Rep. Frank had previously told Card
Player that he hoped to hold a vote on The Internet
Gambling Regulation, Consumer Protection, and
Enforcement Act by this [September] month.
That
act has 55 co-sponsors in the House, but Pappas expects
that number to move “closer to 70” in the next few weeks.
Online Casino News Courtesy of
Infopowa
More news here.
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