Congress eyes Internet gambling bill

Computerworld - Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) today introduced a bill that would make it legal for people living in the U.S. to bet online.

The Internet Gambling Regulation and Enforcement Act of 2007 would allow licensed companies to accept bets from U.S. residents to the extent permitted by individual states, Indian tribes and sports leagues, according to a statement issued by Frank, who is chairman of the Financial Services Committee.

"The existing legislation is an inappropriate interference on the personal freedom of Americans, and this interference should be undone," Frank said in the statement.

The bill would exempt the operators of gambling sites from current restrictions on online gambling. For instance, a law passed in October prevents U.S. banks and credit card companies from processing payments to online gambling sites.

Frank's bill would also require licensed companies to include protections against underage gambling, compulsive gambling, money laundering and fraud, according to the statement.

Traditional forms of legalized gambling already exist in nearly every state, Frank said in the statement.

"By continuing to prohibit Internet gambling in the U.S., the U.S. has left Americans who choose to gamble online without meaningful consumer protections," he said.

In the statement, Frank said the bill would protect consumers by addressing underage and compulsive gambling through a combination of regulations and technology to block children and compulsive gamblers from placing bets.

For example, a user registering at a gambling site would be required to provide a range of information including his name, address, date of birth, telephone number and Social Security number or details from an identity document such as a driver's license, Frank said. That information would then be passed on to the payment service provider and run through a system that would check the data for accuracy against several sources of information.

In order to identify and place restrictions on compulsive gamblers, Frank said sites could limit the amount of money that could be wagered; they could also place limits on the number of transactions a customer could put through on a daily basis.

The Financial Services Committee will hold a hearing on the issue sometime in June.