Who Controls Online Gambling?

April 12, 2009

It used to be that the biggest problem that online gambling had was getting recognized. They tried to get people to realize that online gambling was there and that they were fun � but people were a little wary of them. Then people started getting it and online gambling became very popular. Then online gambling became the root of all evil and the US government made it illegal. They passed the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act or UIGEA and made it illegal for payment processing.

Then President Obama came into office and online gambling started looking like it might become legal again, and now people are fighting over who gets to legalize it and therefore control it. The states say that it should be up to them as to whether or not they get to have online gambling. They say that the UIGEA does not prohibit online gambling within their state if they allow it to be played � so they should have control.

However, the US government says that this is a national idea � and should be determined by the government whether or not online gambling is legal. They say that it is their duty to set online gambling protocols and ensure that safety and security are up to them. But with so many states now vying for intrastate online gambling, it makes one wonder who might get control first.

If the states are able to start allowing online gambling within their borders first, they may just lay claim to it, and therefore be able to decide on a state by state basis what it allowed. If the government is able to act quickly instead and get the UIGEA overturned then they will be able to determine the rules and regulations of online gambling. For many states this is just fine with them. However, for those states that don�t want to allow online gambling, they are upset that this control may be taken away from them.






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