[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 474 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







105th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 474

    To amend sections 1081 and 1084 of title 18, United States Code.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 19, 1997

Mr. Kyl (for himself, Mrs. Feinstein, Mr. Hutchinson, Mr. Grassley, and 
 Mr. Johnson) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
               referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To amend sections 1081 and 1084 of title 18, United States Code.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Internet Gambling Prohibition Act of 
1997''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    Section 1081 of title 18, United States Code, is amended--
            (1) in the matter immediately following the colon, by 
        designating the first 5 undesignated paragraphs as paragraphs 
        (1) through (5), respectively, and indenting each paragraph 
        accordingly;
            (2) in paragraph (5), as so designated--
                    (A) by striking ``wire communication'' and 
                inserting ``communication'';
                    (B) by striking ``transmission of writings'' and 
                inserting ``transmission or receipt of data, 
                writings''; and
                    (C) by striking ``or other like'' and all that 
                follows before the period and inserting ``radio, 
                electromagnetic, photo-optical, photoelectric, or other 
                similar facility''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(6) Bets or wagers.--The term `bets or wagers'--
                    ``(A) means the staking or risking by any person of 
                something of value upon the outcome of a contest of 
                chance or a future contingent event not under the 
                control or influence of the person, upon an agreement 
                or understanding that the person or another person will 
                receive something of value in the event of a certain 
                outcome;
                    ``(B) includes the purchase of a chance or 
                opportunity to win a lottery or other prize; and
                    ``(C) does not include--
                            ``(i) a bona fide business transaction 
                        governed by the securities laws (as that term 
                        is defined in section 3(a)(47) of the 
                        Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 
                        78c(a)(47))) for the purchase or sale at a 
                        future date of securities (as that term is 
                        defined in section 3(a)(10) of the Securities 
                        Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78c(a)(10)));
                            ``(ii) a contract of indemnity or 
                        guarantee; or
                            ``(iii) a contract for life, health, or 
                        accident insurance.''.

SEC. 3. TRANSMISSION OF WAGERING INFORMATION; PENALTIES.

    Section 1084 of title 18, United States Code, is amended--
            (1) by striking subsections (a) and (b) and inserting the 
        following:
    ``(a) In General.--
            ``(1) Persons engaged in the business of betting or 
        wagering.--Whoever, being engaged in the business of betting or 
        wagering knowingly uses a communication facility for the 
        transmission or receipt in interstate or foreign commerce of 
        bets or wagers, information assisting in the placing of bets or 
        wagers, or a communication that entitles the transmitter or 
        receiver to the opportunity to receive money or credit as a 
        result of bets or wagers, shall be fined not more than $10,000, 
        imprisoned not more than 2 years, or both.
            ``(2) Other persons.--Whoever (other than a person 
        described in paragraph (1)) knowingly uses a communication 
        facility for the transmission or receipt in interstate or 
        foreign commerce of bets or wagers, information assisting in 
        the placing of bets or wagers, or a communication that entitles 
        the transmitter or receiver to the opportunity to receive money 
        or credit as a result of bets or wagers, shall be fined not 
        more than $5,000, imprisoned not more than 1 year, or both.
    ``(b) Exceptions.--
            ``(1) News reporting; legal bets and wagers.--Nothing in 
        this section shall be construed to prohibit the transmission or 
        receipt in interstate or foreign commerce of any information--
                    ``(A) for use in the news reporting of any 
                activity, event, or contest upon which bets or wagers 
                are based; or
                    ``(B) relating to the placing of bets or wagers, if 
                such betting or wagering--
                            ``(i) is legal in the State or foreign 
                        country in which the transmission originates; 
                        and
                            ``(ii) is legal in each State and each 
                        foreign country in which the transmission is 
                        received.
            ``(2) State law.--Nothing in this section shall be 
        construed to preempt any State law.''; and
            (2) in subsection (d)--
                    (A) by striking ``(d) When'' and inserting the 
                following:
    ``(d) Duties of Common Carriers and Interactive Computer Service 
Providers.--
            ``(1) In general.--If'';
                    (B) by inserting ``or interactive computer service 
                provider'' after ``common carrier'' each place that 
                term appears;
                    (C) by striking ``Nothing'' and inserting the 
                following:
            ``(3) Judicial action.--Nothing''; and
                    (D) by inserting after paragraph (1), as so 
                designated by subparagraph (A) of this paragraph, the 
                following:
            ``(2) Injunctive relief.--Any Federal, State, or local law 
        enforcement agency acting within its jurisdiction, shall have 
        the authority, following the issuance of a notice under 
        paragraph (1), to seek an injunction or other appropriate 
        relief from a Federal or State court of competent jurisdiction 
        barring access to the communication facility at issue or 
        preventing the use of such facility for the purpose of 
        transmitting or receiving gambling information in interstate or 
        foreign commerce in violation of Federal, State, or local 
        law.''.

SEC. 4. SENSE OF THE SENATE.

    It is the sense of the Senate that the Federal Government should 
have extraterritorial jurisdiction over the transmission to or receipt 
from the United States of--
            (1) bets or wagers (as that term is defined in section 1081 
        of title 18, United States Code);
            (2) information assisting in the placing of bets or wagers; 
        and
            (3) any communication that entitles the transmitter or 
        recipient to the opportunity to receive money or credit as a 
        result of bets or wagers.

SEC. 5. REPORT.

    Not later than 360 days after the date of enactment of this Act, 
the Attorney General shall submit a report to Congress that includes--
            (1) an analysis of the problems, if any, associated with 
        enforcing section 1084 of title 18, United States Code, as 
        amended by this Act;
            (2) recommendations for the best use of the resources of 
        the Department of Justice to enforce that section;
            (3) recommendations for the best use of the resources of 
        the Federal Communications Commission to enforce that section; 
        and
            (4) an estimate of the amount of activity and money being 
        used to gamble on the Internet (as that term is defined in 
        section 230(e)(1) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 
        230(e)(1)).
                                 <all>