Proponents of online gambling got some big endorsements last week when a laundry list of powerful national organizations rejected an online gaming ban on Capitol Hill.
The North American Association of State & Provincial Lotteries (NASPL), the National Conference of State Legislatures and the National Fraternal Order of Police all came out against the bill, the Restoration of America’s Wire Act, pushed by Las Vegas Sands and its chairman, Sheldon Adelson, that would shut down all online gambling in the U.S.
An editorial by Chuck Canterbury, president of the National Fraternal Order of Police, opposes a federal ban on internet gambling.
Chuck Canterbury’s editorial ran in The Hill and supports state’s rights to legalize online gambling within their borders. Three states—Nevada, New Jersey and Delaware—have legalized online gambling and as many as 10 others are reported to be considering legislation.
Bills introduced in Congress, backed by billionaire casino owner Sheldon Adelson, who opposes online gambling, would make online gaming illegal in the U.S. and would not grandfather existing online gaming.
A number of politicians have penned editorials both for and against online gaming, as opponents and proponents wage a public opinion battle, but Canterbury’s editorial comes from a law enforcement source.
Here are some excerpts from the editorial:
“The first question we ask when evaluating any piece of legislation is: will this make our citizens and officers safer? And the answer to this in regards to a nationwide ban on all online gaming is an unequivocal no. Currently, approximately 1 million Americans spend approximately $3 billion a year on illegal, black market online gaming. And we know, based on demand, this number is going to continue to grow significantly in the future…
“Not only does the black market for Internet gaming include no consumer protections, it also operates entirely offshore with unlicensed operators, drastically increasing the threat of identity theft, fraud or other criminal acts. There is also evidence that these gaming sites launder money for organized crime and help to finance terrorist networks. It doesn’t take a law enforcement officer to know that an overseas black market that moves billions of dollars every year is a breeding ground for these transnational criminal organizations…
“Furthermore, not only would a ban push more and more Americans into the black market, it would remove the protections that states like Delaware, New Jersey, and Nevada have already put in place. Essentially, you are banning a well-regulated system, in favor of an unregulated, unprotected, black market.
“The solution is clear: we should maintain states’ rights to regulate online gaming within their borders and reinvest that revenue to make sure the systems are safe for all consumers. This will also allow law enforcement the tools necessary to monitor and shutdown illegal activity and give consumers who may have been victimize a means of redress.
Both the NASPL and the NCSL wrote letters to the bill’s Senate sponsor, South Carolina Senator Lindsay Graham.
The NCSL letter was authored by Oregon state Senator Bruce Starr, president of NCSL, and Nevada state Senator Debbie Smith, NCSL president-elect, stating, “States have proven that they are effective regulators of the gambling industry and the proponents of this legislation fail to make a case that we have been negligent in our responsibilities to the industry and consumers. This attempt to enact a wholesale prohibition of online gambling with the Restoration of America’s Wire Act is merely a solution seeking a problem.”
NASPL is fearful that the bill will not only eliminate online sales of lottery tickets, but also threatens multi-state lotteries like Powerball and Mega Millions.
“Our association believes, and is on record, that all gaming should be left up to the individual states to determine the games that are offered, as well as the manner in which they are being delivered to their customers,” wrote NASPL Executive Director David Gale. “This is, and has always been, a state’s right to make these decisions as they relate to gaming within its respective boarders. Since lottery products are sold in a competing market, it is important that we continue to design and offer secure games that people want to play so that lottery states can continue to fund the much-needed programs and/or services for which lottery revenues are earmarked.”
In Congress, Graham’s bill to toughen the federal wire act and ban online gambling in the U.S. can expect two “no” votes from New Jersey’s U.S. senators.
Democrats Robert Menendez and Cory Booker said they would fight passage of the measure saying a ban would simply prop up illegal gambling sites.
“Blanket prohibition of internet gaming will empower black market operators at the expense of responsible states like New Jersey, which have invested in creating a secure internet gaming structure,” Menendez said in a news release.
Silvia Alvarez, a spokeswoman for Booker, told the Newark Star-Ledger that New Jersey “acted responsibly and invested in creating a structured, secure and regulated environment for online gaming.”
“Senator Booker opposes this legislation, because it would drive Internet gambling underground, where there are no protections for consumers and no measures to prevent minors from taking part,” she said. “The bill would have the perverse effect of putting millions of American poker players at risk while doing nothing to prevent minors from playing online, combat fraud or crack down on other illegal activities.”
New Jersey State Senator Raymond Lesniak—a principal architect of the state’s online gambling legislation—called for the state’s Congressional delegation to oppose the bill.
“I would presume that our congressional delegation would stop that or, at the very least, grandfather in New Jersey,” Lesniak told the Star-Ledger. “Even that—a ban in other states—would restrict our ability to sign agreements with them to get additional revenues for New Jersey and Atlantic City casinos.”
