Prohibition on Internet Gambling a Failure - Earthtimes

U.S. Federal Reserve, Treasury Department and Financial Service Companies Call Proposed Rules Unworkable

WASHINGTON, April 2, 2008 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Expert testimony to Congress today offered further evidence that the ban on Internet gambling won't work. Witnesses unanimously agreed that U.S. financial service companies would face serious regulatory burdens in attempting to enforce the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 (UIGEA), a law that is not likely to stop millions of Americans from gambling online.

"Testimony from the federal regulators and representatives of the financial services community made clear today that the prohibition on Internet gambling isn't working now and will not work in the future," said Jeffrey Sandman, spokesman for the Safe and Secure Internet Gambling Initiative. "U.S. banks and credit card companies, along with every other type of U.S. company involved in payment systems, would be forced to spend substantial resources to comply with a ban on Internet gambling that can be easily circumvented by anyone in the U.S. that wants to continue to gamble online."

Representatives of the U.S. Department of the Treasury and Federal Reserve System acknowledged at the hearing the challenges U.S. financial institutions will face in attempting to comply with UIGEA. Since most payment systems are not well designed to comply with this law, "it will be very difficult to shut off payment systems for use of Internet gambling transactions," said Ms. Louise Roseman, Director, Division of Federal Reserve Bank Operations and Payment Systems, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. "The implementing statute will not be iron clad at all."

Read more of this online gambling article here...