Second Proposal To Ban Online Poker Introduced

A second federal bill aiming to ban online poker in the United States has been introduced this year. On Tuesday, S. 1668 was read twice and referred to the Senate Committee on the Judiciary.

The legislation was introduced by Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and cosponsored by Senators Kelly Ayotte (R-NH), Dan Coats (R-IN), Mike Lee (R-UT), Marco Rubio (R-FL), Thom Tillis (R-NC) and Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), who is the oldest serving US Senator.

The text of the bill isn’t yet available online, but it is known that the bill is looking to “restore” the 1961 Wire Act, an old law that was re-interpreted in 2011 by the Department of Justice to allow states to legalize and regulate online gaming within their borders. Restoring the Wire Act would try to put the genie back in the bottle. Nevada, New Jersey and Delaware are the only states currently regulating online gaming industries, while Pennsylvania, California and New York are considering it.

Graham, who was expected to introduce his bill at some point this year, is also running for president.

“From bad timing to bad policy, it is clear Senator Graham’s priorities are misplaced. Instead of banning consumer access to Internet poker, Congress should corral the unregulated marketplace and implement a system which protects consumers and empowers the government to hold fraudulent operators accountable,” John Pappas of the Poker Players Alliance said in a statement.

Banning online gaming is backed by billionaire casino owner Sheldon Adelson, who contributes heavily to Republican candidates in elections. That fact is widely seen as the motivation for Graham’s bill. Adelson says he is against online casino games because it will hurt the casino industry and that Internet gaming can’t be controlled effectively.

“Sheldon Adelson’s power over politicians, especially those running for president, is significant, but Congress must show it is stronger," the Poker Players Alliance added. "Online poker licensing and regulation is the only way to ensure consumers are protected and Americans who want to play poker online, have a safe way to do so.”

Graham’s knowledge of the Internet poker issue has been questioned before. Earlier this year, the 59-year-old admitted that he has never used email.

Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-UT) introduced his version of RAWA (H.R. 707) in February. It hasn’t made any progress since then, so it appears to be a non-factor at this point.

According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Graham’s proposal doesn’t contain a grandfather clause that would allow states already regulating online gaming to continue.

Reports indicate that at this early stage Graham’s bill does include some sort of carve-out for state lotteries that have decided to use the Internet to sell tickets and offer other services. Another exemption from the online gaming ban would be closed-circuit online betting, such as mobile sports betting that happens within Las Vegas casinos.

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