Jay Lakin of Poker Source Online told the Las Vegas Review Journal that he is sceptical that a rollback of the US online gambling ban is imminent despite his support for the bill introduced into Congress last week by Barney Frank and Ron Paul that would prevent enforcement of the UIGEA.
“I don’t want to be a naysayer, but things move very, very slowly in Congress,” said Lakin, who also commented on Rep. Berkley’s proposal for a legislation calling for a one-year study of internet gambling. “It’s nice of her to put it forward, but why should we spend more tax dollars to study something we already know the answer to? Internet gambling isn’t going away, and it’s going to continue to grow.”
Meanwhile, the American Bankers Association applauded the Frank-Paul legislation introduced on the back of financial industry concerns that the gambling ban is unworkable. “I don’t know what can be done or will be done legislatively, but we certainly appreciate the interest,” Floyd Stoner, a lobbyist for the ABA, told The Hill.
Steve Verdier of the Independent Community Bankers of America added: “The banking system is just not set up to sort out whether one payment is a legal payment and one payment is not. We think the Frank-Paul bill would give everyone the chance to take a breath.”
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