by Congressman Bob Goodlatte
No longer do people have to leave the comfort of their homes to travel to
a casino; they can access casinos from their personal computers - as well as
all of the problems of addiction, crime, bankruptcy and family difficulties
that come from gambling.
Gambling on the Internet has grown to a more than billion-dollar-per-year
unregulated industry. Users do not know whether they are receiving fair
odds, or even if they will be paid if they win at some of the more than 700
cybercasinos and sports-betting Web sites.
Of greatest concern is the impact on children exposed to gambling on the
Internet while sitting in their living rooms, or even at school, without the
careful safeguards required by the legalized gambling industry to ensure
that children are excluded.
To combat this growing problem, I introduced H.R. 3125, the Internet
Gambling Prohibition Act. H.R. 3125 is similar to legislation sponsored by
Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., and passed by the Senate by unanimous consent last
fall. The goal of the legislation is to ban casinos,
sports wagering and other forms of gambling on the Internet.
The federal government always has had a role in helping states fight
illegal gambling across state lines.
This legislation does not expand that role but merely modernizes the
out-of-date Federal Wire Act to take into account new technologies used by
those who attempt to evade the law and provide illegal gambling services.
State-regulated parimutuel industries (horse and dog racing and jai alai)
are allowed under the legislation to use the Internet for limited purposes
under a closed-loop, subscriber-based system. The system recognizes state
regulatory authority, while limiting that scope only to
what is currently lawful and requiring that it not be accessible to minors.
Internet gambling is an extremely lucrative business; there is a lot of
money that stands to be lost if this legislation is enacted.
As the National Gambling Impact Study Commission has documented, Internet
gambling is growing at an explosive rate.
The stakes are high.
The time to put a stop to this harmful activity is now.
Congressman Goodlatte represents the Sixth Congressional
District of Virginia and is Co-Chairman of the Congressional Internet Caucus
and Chairman of the House Republican High Tech Working Group.