US congressman seeks to legalize online gambling nationwide

2013-06-07

Reading time 1:31 min

(US).- Peter King, a Republican Congressman, has introduced legislation which would establish a common federal regulatory regime for online gaming while creating the Office of Internet Gambling Oversight in the Treasury Department to set criteria for the licensing of operators by state and tribal governments.

“A common federal standard will ensure strong protections for consumers, protect against problem and underage gambling and make it easier for businesses, players, lawmakers and regulators to navigate and freely participate,” said King.

King has been a member of the House of Representatives since 1993 and introduced his Internet Gambling Regulation, Consumer Protection and Enforcement Act 2013 on Thursday.

The introduced legislation to allow online gambling on a federal level, which he says will give consumers more uniformity than legalizing it on a state-by-state basis.

The move by Representative Peter King of New York follows industry lobbying for federal legislation to provide a larger, more liquid market across state lines, attracting more gamblers.

King’s office stated that the proposed measure, which would only become law after being approved by the House of Representatives and Senate before being signed by the President, also includes an opt-out provision for any jurisdiction ‘that does not wish to participate in the federal interstate system...and prohibit online gambling or to operate intra-state gaming within its borders as authorised under state or tribal law’.

Numerous state officials and lotteries have long resisted federal legislation that would legalise online gambling as they feel this could possibly hurt existing operations. This was one of the reasons a proposed measure from Nevada Senator Harry Reid working in partnership with Arizona Republican Jon Kyl was ultimately defeated last year before it even had a chance to be introduced.

“We spent the last four years working very, very hard to get in a position to support such legislation if it was introduced,” said Frank Fahrenkopf, CEO for the American Gaming Association. “So we're now left in a situation where Kyl, who was very important in the process, has retired and you've got a multitude of states starting to pass legislation. So we think the urgency is even more important now.”

Previous bills in Congress have failed. King's bill, as currently contemplated, would allow individual states to opt out of federal online poker requirements.