Indiana State Representative Jerry Denbo keeps introducing legislation to prohibit Internet gambling in his state, but it seems only a few hardy souls are listening. Last week Denbo introduced House Bill 1042,
which received its first reading before passing on to the Committee on Public Policy, Ethics and Veterans Affairs, where it's likely to languish before eventually fading into oblivion. Denbo authored the bill, which was introduced on January 8, with the support of Rep. Charlie Brown and Rep. William Crawford.
"I always thought it was wrong to gamble on the Internet," Denbo said in a phone interview today. Through the creation of Internet gambling prohibition legislation, Denbo hopes to protect children from accessing online gambling sites, he explained, as well as those individuals who aren't able to protect themselves when entering Net betting sites.
His third foray to prohibit Internet gambling, however, has been banished to committee because the House speaker won't let it out, Denbo said. The speaker's reason: Only one gambling bill will be considered this year in Indiana, and legislators need to decide the fate of the state's floating casinos, which is a much more pressing issue than Internet gambling, it seems.
Despite Denbo's annual prohibition effort, there may already be state legislation prohibiting Indiana residents from participating in cybergambling activities. In 1998 the then-Attorney General Jeff Modisett
determined that it was illegal for Indiana residents to gamble online. (See "Gambling Sites Declared Off Limits to Hoosiers.") In an opinion letter addressed to the Indiana Commission for Higher Education, Modisett said, "it is my opinion that it is illegal both for persons to gamble over the internet from Indiana and to provide internet gambling services to persons in Indiana."
Click here to view Indiana House Bill 1042.