For those of you who are following the introduction of various online poker and Internet gambling legslation in Congress, Representative Jim McDermott’s Internet Gambling Regulation and Tax Enforcement Act was reintroduced last week.
This act serves as a companion to Barney Frank’s bill to overturn the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) of 2006. The UIGEA has not outlawed online poker or gambling. However, it puts strict regulations on banks, credit card companies and online payment services, which has caused a lot of problems for online poker players in the United States.
Barney Frank’s bill has set guidelines for licensing and regulation of the online gambling industry, suggesting that online gambling operators will be required to collect certain fees and pay certain taxes. The Internet Gambling Regulation and Tax Enforcement Act states what those fees and taxes will be. The new version, which was introduced last week, establishes not only a federal license fee but a state license fee as well. Additionally, it states that 25% of federal revenue gleaned from online gambling will go towards foster care programs, which is an issue that McDermott strongly supports.
McDermott hopes to gain more support for this bill after Frank’s bill is marked up in the coming months by the House Financial Services Committee. If these bills are passed, it should make things much easier for online poker players in the United States.