A proposed bill, HR-2267, aimed at licensing Internet gambling activities may not...

on all activity and it’s not an effective way to protect children,” he said. With HR-2267, Congress can legalize Internet gambling and consumers can have protection “that they're not currently getting on Internet sites that are overseas,” said Rep. John Campbell, R-Calif. The bill can also “provide economic growth in this country by making sure that these legal gambling operations are located and cited here.” During his testimony, Michael Fagan, a law enforcement consultant, cautioned against any action that would expand Internet gambling in the U.S. It would be irresponsible to take any steps toward expanding the availability of Internet gambling “before first directing and funding the DOJ and/or the states’ attorneys general to enable a coordinated, systematic approach to enforcing existing laws prohibiting and taxing such conduct,” he said. Enacting HR-2267 could resolve compliance problems faced by credit unions that try to comply with the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA), said Discovery Federal Credit Union President Ed Williams. “By registering Internet gaming businesses, the legislation provides safe harbor for financial institutions to make payments to these federally registered sites without any risk of violating UIGEA.” There’s likely to be universal agreement among American Indian tribes “that if Internet gaming were to be permitted, Indian tribes must have the ability to participate on a level playing field with other gaming interests,” and the gains the nations have made under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act must not be endangered, said Lynn Malerba, chair of the Mohegan Tribe of Connecticut. The tribe supports the bill, but it must be enhanced, she said. The provisions should “make it clear that tribal governments and tribal gaming facilities should be clearly authorized to operate Internet gaming sites.” The bill doesn’t expand gambling, but “simply provides the appropriate government safeguards to an industry that currently exists and continues to grow,” said Annie Duke of the Poker Players Alliance. American poker players want to “play on sites licensed in the U.S., which will provide even greater consumer protections for the player and yield badly needed tax revenue for state and local governments.” The Commerce Casino in California opposes the bill as it’s currently written, said owner, Tom Malkasian. “The bill should be changed to require all facilities and personnel licensed under the Act to be physically located in the U.S,” he said.