In case you missed it last week, brand new internet gambling legislation was introduced by Congressman Pete Sessions (R-TX). Hailing from the same state as Republican Presidential candidate Ron Paul, who earlier authored legislation with Barney Frank, Sessions’ legislation focuses the efforts of enforcing the UIGEA not on online poker or online casinos, but rather sports books are the target. The legislation, which had been supported by three co-sponsors when it was introduced, is now up to four in total: Marion Berry (D-AR), Jesse Jackson Jr. (D-IL), Bill Delahunt (D-MA), and Gene Green (D-TX). It’s interesting to note, and probably helpful for the future of the bill, that its sponsor (Sessions) is a Republican, whereas its four co-sponsors are all Democrats. Let’s take a look at what it means.
The new legislation takes the form of HR 6663, the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Clarification and Implementation Act of 2008. The Act, as the name implies, was introduced by the Republican Congressman to “provide additional clarification with regard to the implementation of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006, and for other purposes.” The meat of the UIGEA states that any online gambling that was illegal prior to its passage would remain illegal under the new law. However, the distinction between what is and is not illegal is still completely unknown. The text of HR 6663 echoes this uncertainty: “Federal law was both vague and outdated regarding Internet gambling activities, as Federal criminal gambling statutes were passed decades before the commercial use of the Internet.”
In addition to recognizing that the legal environment is ambiguous at best, HR 6663 also sympathizes with companies like Party Poker, who solicited U.S. customers prior to the UIGEA becoming law on 2006, but are also publicly traded on major stock exchanges: “Continued legal jeopardy for companies that made a good faith effort to comply voluntarily with clarified United States law following the passage of the UIGEA punishes behavior that the law intended to foster and inadvertently rewards continued noncompliance by other foreign entities.” The other entities in question include companies like Bodog, which both continue to accept clients from the United States and also offer a sports book, which is a cardinal sin according to HR 6663.
The new legislation’s Rule of Construction sums up which companies will be the targets should the legislation be passed into law: “No provision of this Act, or any amendment made by this Act, shall be construed as clarifying or implying that Internet bets or wagers, other than sports bets or wagers, which were accepted subsequent to October 13, 2006, are in violation of Federal law.” It doesn’t get much louder than that.
It should be noted that HR 6663 does not explicitly make online poker illegal; rather, it targets the UIGEA at sports books, specifically. Such a lack of a clear distinction has drawn ire from organizations like the Poker Players Alliance, which is the main lobbying arm for the industry. The PPA has come out in opposition to HR 6663 for trying to complicate the UIGEA even further. The PPA has noted that online poker has been proven to be legal in the United States, whereas HR 6663 states that the situation is unclear. A 2002 case involving MasterCard helps clarify online poker’s legal status in the U.S.
Congressman Green became the fourth co-sponsor to the bill on Friday. The bill itself was introduced on Wednesday. HR 6663 was referred to the Committee on Financial Services and the Committee on the Judiciary.