The federal bill that seeks to ban real-money online gaming in the US, known as the Restoration of America’s Wire Act, has been discussed at a House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform in Washington.
It was a second look at the bill, which would ban online gaming, including in states where it is already regulated - namely Delaware, Nevada and New Jersey. Congress first considered RAWA in March.
At the hearing, supporters of the ban argued that online gaming cannot be controlled sufficiently and is vulnerable to criminal activity. Those who oppose RAWA countered that legal online gaming sites are subject to robust regulation and prevent Americans wishing to gamble online from doing so on illegal sites.
“For anybody to argue that the internet can be walled off and used in just these certain boundaries — it’s a joke, come on,” said Utah representative Jason Chaffetz, a Republican.
“Nobody with a straight face is gonna come before the American people and say, ‘well, the internet, it’s just for the people of Nevada,’ or ‘it’s just for the people of Rhode Island.’ You kidding me? You give me a good 18-year-old and about 36 hours and you can hack through just about anything.”
Nevada senator Mark Lipparelli, a former chairman of the state’s Gaming Control Board, put forward an opposite view. He said the three states that have legalised online gaming have done well in their regulatory efforts.
“From a regulatory and law enforcement perspective, Nevada, New Jersey and Delaware have been successful,” Lipparelli said.
“Where there were concerns over licensing, protecting children and the vulnerable, player protection, taxes, money laundering and geolocation, these states have had good success.”
Source: Las Vegas Sun
