A note from mike: i had an idea a few weeks ago about using digital money or e-gold for casinos. if this goes through then it looks like thats what people might do then. ============================================================ From Wired News, available online at: http://www.wired.com/news/print/0,1294,39048,00.html Net Gambling Ban Not Dead Yet by Declan McCullagh 3:00 a.m. Sep. 26, 2000 PDT If you like to gamble online, your luck may be about to change for the worse. House Republicans are in the middle of closed-door negotiations over a bill that appears likely to restrict Americans from using credit cards at online casinos. After the House failed to approve the original Internet Gambling Prohibition Act in July, its champion, Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-Virginia), has been rewriting it in hopes of attracting additional support. The proposal "says that no money orders or checks or credit cards can be used in an Internet gambling transaction," says Michelle Semones, a spokeswoman for Goodlatte. "If you take away that convenience of using your credit card, you'll lose a lot of customers there." Goodlatte's original legislation failed to reach the necessary two-thirds supermajority because it morphed from a straightforward gambling ban into a way for special interest groups to win exceptions. Some conservative groups pulled their support after horse racing, dog tracks, and jai alai lobbyists inserted language that would have, if anything, expanded their reach online. Another controversial point was a requirement that Internet service providers "block access" to overseas websites when requested by police. That verges on being Internet regulation, says the powerful chairman of the House Rules Committee, David Dreier (R-California), who objected to such a requirement. "Chairman Dreier has some concerns regarding the ISP provisions," a spokesman said. "That's primarily the reason he opposed the bill while it was on the floor earlier this year. He's working with the sponsors of the bill to see if those concerns can be addressed." But that change would make it difficult for the U.S. government to block access to offshore websites. As an alternative, Goodlatte says, financial institutions should become de-facto Internet police by restricting credit card transactions going to offshore casinos. Goodlatte's office said he would consider using language from a related bill, the Internet Gambling Funding Prohibition Act, approved by the House Banking Committee in June. Because conservative groups are split between supporting and opposing Goodlatte's bill, the House leadership reportedly blocked the measure from going to the House floor again this year. The Clinton administration opposes it. In response, Goodlatte and his Senate ally, Jon Kyl (R-Arizona), went on the attack. The duo showed up on James Dobson's popular Focus on the Family radio show and denounced Republican leaders as obstructionist and overly reliant on campaign contributions from the gambling industry. "It would be very, very helpful for our listeners to make calls to the Republican leadership. I am just sick about what the Republican leadership is doing," Dobson said during the Sept. 8 program. Kyl complained that Rules Chairman Dreier "feels as though it's his responsibility to protect the Internet at all costs." Goodlatte replied: "These are folks, primarily lottery companies, that stand to make tens of millions of dollars if they can start selling lottery tickets online, in people's homes, which I think is horrible." The on-the-air offensive worked. The next day, Capitol Hill switchboards were ringing off the hook with calls from irate conservatives, and Goodlatte soon got what he wanted from Republican leaders. "The leadership has requested that Mr. Dreier and Mr. Goodlatte sit down to work out a compromise," said one lobbyist opposed to the bill. "They are very close to an agreement." Another lobbyist close to the Republican leadership said that Dreier wants Goodlatte to guarantee, with a letter from 40 Democrats, that they'll support the bill. Lisa Dean, vice president of the conservative Free Congress Foundation, says that "we're not so sure that Goodlatte has the votes he says he has." Dean, who opposes the bill, likened it to the abandoned "Know Your Customer" proposal that would have required banks to increase surveillance of their customers. "If members in the House knew there was a Know Your Customer provision in this bill, they wouldn't vote for it, given last year's backlash against the Know Your Customer proposal from the federal banking agencies," Dean said. "If people knew this had been slipped in, they wouldn't vote for it." The bill could go to the House floor for a vote this week or next. Since the identical version hasn't been approved by the Senate, a vote in that chamber would be required. Another option would be for the measure's backers to attach it to an appropriations bill. Related Wired Links: Tapping Into Porn Jul. 13, 2000 GOP Wants No Net Bets Jul. 13, 2000 Gambling Regs, Gambling Judges Jun. 21, 2000 Net Gambling Bill Seen as Risky Jun. 21, 2000 Aussies' Online Gaming Debate May. 31, 2000 Let Us Play Poker and Swear Apr. 26, 2000 Net Tobacco a Smoking Issue Apr. 4, 2000 Copyright 1994-2000 Wired Digital Inc. All rights reserved.