[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 21 (Friday, February 17, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E191-E192]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




       INTRODUCTION OF THE ``INTERNET GAMBLING PROHIBITION ACT''

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. BOB GOODLATTE

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, February 16, 2006

  Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to introduce today 
bipartisan legislation, the Internet Gambling Prohibition Act, along 
with my colleague Representative Rick Boucher of Virginia, to address 
the ever increasing problem of illegal Internet gambling in our Nation.
  The Internet is a revolutionary tool that dramatically affects the 
way we communicate, conduct business, and access information. As it 
knows no boundaries, the Internet is accessed by folks in rural and 
urban areas alike, in large countries as well as small. The Internet is 
currently expanding by leaps and bounds; however, it has not yet come 
close to reaching its true potential as a medium for commerce and 
communication.
  One of the main reasons that the Internet has not reached this 
potential is that many folks view it as a wild frontier, with no 
safeguards to protect children and very few legal protections to 
prevent online criminal activity. The ability of the World Wide Web to 
penetrate every home and community across the globe has both positive 
and negative implications--while it can be an invaluable source of 
information and means of communication, it can also override community 
values and standards, subjecting them to whatever may or may not be 
found online.
  Gambling is an excellent example of this situation. It is currently 
illegal in the United States unless regulated by the States. With the 
development of the Internet, however, prohibitions and regulations 
governing gambling have been turned on their head. No longer do people 
have to leave the comfort of their homes and make the affirmative 
decision to travel to a casino; they can access the casino from their 
living rooms.
  Since 1868, the Federal Government has enacted Federal gambling 
statutes when a

[[Page E192]]

particular type of gambling activity has escaped the ability of States 
to regulate it. For over 100 years, Congress has acted to assist States 
in enforcing their respective policies on gambling when developments in 
technology of an interstate nature, such as the Internet, have 
compromised the effectiveness of State gambling laws.
  The negative consequences of online gambling can be as detrimental to 
the families and communities of addictive gamblers as if a bricks and 
mortar casino was built right next door. Online gambling can result in 
addiction, bankruptcy, divorce, crime, and moral decline just as with 
traditional forms of gambling, the costs of which must ultimately be 
borne by society.
  Gambling on the Internet is especially enticing to youth, 
pathological gamblers, and criminals. There are currently no mechanisms 
in place to prevent youths--who make up the largest percentage of 
Internet users--from using their parents' credit card numbers to 
register and set up accounts for use at Internet gambling sites. In 
addition, pathological gamblers may become easily addicted to online 
gambling because of the Internet's easy access, anonymity and instant 
results. Finally, Internet gambling can provide a nearly undetectable 
harbor for criminal enterprises. The anonymity associated with the 
Internet makes online gambling more susceptible to crime.
  I have long been an advocate of the Internet and of limited 
government regulation of this new medium. However, that does not mean 
that the Internet should be a regulatory free zone or that our existing 
laws should not apply to the Internet. I think we can all agree that it 
would be very bad public policy to allow offline activity deemed 
criminal by States to be freely committed online and to go unpunished 
simply because we are reluctant to apply our laws to the Internet.
  Gambling on the Internet has become an extremely lucrative business. 
Numerous studies have charted the explosive growth of this industry, 
both by the increases in gambling websites available, and via industry 
revenues. Some estimates show that it is now a $12 billion a year 
industry.
  Most Internet gambling sites are offshore. Virtual betting parlors 
accepting bets from individuals in the United States have attempted to 
avoid the application of United States law by locating themselves 
offshore and out of our jurisdictional reach. These offshore, fly-by-
night Internet gambling operators are unlicensed, untaxed and 
unregulated and are sucking billions of dollars out of the United 
States. In addition, the FBI and the Department of Justice has 
testified that Internet gambling serves as a vehicle for money 
laundering activities and can be exploited by terrorists to launder 
money.

  Current law already prohibits gambling over telephone wires. However, 
because the Internet does not always travel over telephone wires, these 
laws, which were written before the invention of the World Wide Web, 
have become outdated. My legislation simply clarifies the state of the 
law by bringing the current prohibition against wire line interstate 
gambling up to speed with the development of new technology. It also 
makes clear once and for all that the prohibition is not limited to 
sports-related bets and wagers.
  In addition, my legislation will add a new provision to the law that 
would prohibit a gambling business from accepting certain forms of non-
cash payment, including credit cards and electronic transfers, for the 
transmission of illegal bets and wagers. This provision provides an 
enforcement mechanism to address the situation where the gambling 
business is located offshore but the gambling business used bank 
accounts in the United States. The bill also provides an additional 
tool to fight illegal gambling by giving Federal, State, local and 
tribal law enforcement new injunctive authority to prevent and restrain 
violations of the law.
  The legislation I am introducing will return control to the States by 
protecting the right of citizens in each State to decide through their 
State legislatures if they want to allow gambling within their borders 
and not have that right taken away by offshore, fly-by-night operators. 
The regulation of intrastate gambling is within the jurisdiction of the 
States, so the bill leaves the regulation of wholly intrastate betting 
or wagering to the States with tight controls to be sure that such 
betting or wagering does not extend beyond their borders or to minors.
  Internet gambling is a serious problem that must be stopped. The 
Internet Gambling Prohibition Act will help eliminate this harmful 
activity before it spreads further. I urge my colleagues to support 
this very important legislation.

                          ____________________