On August 6, Senator Robert Menendez introduced the Internet Poker and Games of Skill Regulation, Consumer Protection and Enforcement Act of 2009 in the US.
Senator Menendez’s I-Poker Act would authorise a federally regulated regime for the licensing and operation of internet poker sites. The I-Poker Act is counterpart legislation to the Internet Gambling Regulation, Consumer Protection and Enforcement Act introduced by Congressman Barney Frank in May.
It is reported however, that online industry observers are asking whether a specific clause contained in Menendez’s legislation proposal on online poker, as well as Representative Barney Frank’s legislation proposal on online gaming, is signalling a protectionist intent on the part of future US regulators. Online gambling legalisation proposals by Menendez and Congressman Barney Frank both contain the potentially discriminatory clause, which allows the US Treasury to reject applicants who have failed to file "...a federal or state tax returnŠowed to a jurisdiction in which the applicant operates or does business."
Some feel that it is a clear indication that any legalisation in the US will result in only American operators getting the lcensing green light, while others feel that the inclusion is a political ploy designed to appease possible opponents of the proposals.
