Georgia, Illinois, and North Dakota are said to be slouching toward legalizing Internet gambling in those states, with lawmakers in all three saying they feel confident that legislative proposals won't cross admittedly murky federal law—and prepared to defend the proposals in court, if need be.
"No one wants tax increases," said North Dakota State Rep. Jim Kasper (R-Fargo), whose body has passed a proposal to let online poker sites operate within the state. "This is a legitimate revenue maker."
Not as far as the U.S. Justice Department is concerned, though: published reports indicate Justice send a letter to North Dakota Attorney General Wayne Stenejem's office reminding the state that federal law bans all Internet gambling.
That letter was passed on to the state Senate Judiciary Committee, which is holding hearings on the lower House bill.
Illionis's state legislature is considering a bill to let state residents 18 and older buy lottery tickets on the Internet. That bill is set for a state Senate vote in April and, according to state Sen. John Cullerton (D-Chicago), could mean millions in new revenues for the state.
Georgia's lower House has passed a bill similar to the Illinois online lottery ticket bill, written by Rep. Terry Barnard (R-Greenville).
This activity comes while Britain's Parliament ponders allowing a reported 137 land-based British casinos to take online bets from Americans, which observers think would undercut bids by American officials to stifle Net gambling.
The U.S. government is challenging a World Trade Organization ruling that letting credit cards be used for domestic gambling but not cyberspace betting violates international trade rules. And two federal lawmakers—Sen. Jon Kyl (R-Arizona) and Rep. Spencer Bachus (R-Alabama)—are reported to be pushing anti-Internet gambling bills.
