John Ensign's response to wizardofodds.com's Michael Shackelford (
http://wizardofodds.com/general/hr4411.html ):
July 26, 2006
Mr. Michael Shackleford
(address removed)
Las Vegas, Nevada 89117
Dear Mr. Shackleford:
Thank you for contacting me about legislation to prohibit online gaming. I value the opinions of every Nevadan and am always grateful to those who take the time to inform me of their views.
For several years, Congress has been considering Internet gaming legislation which would modernize current law and expand the scope of prohibited activities for facilitating online gaming. Thus far, none of these bills have been signed into law. Most of the estimated 1,500 Internet gaming sites operate in offshore locations - likely beyond the reach of U.S. law enforcement and the rules and regulations that apply to American casinos.
As legislation has come before the Senate in past years, I worked to ensure that the proposals did not unfairly discriminate against certain forms of gaming, such as the casinos located in our state, while favoring others, such as gaming on Indian reservations and race tracks. Furthermore, it is vital that individual states maintain the right to regulate gaming operations within their borders.
On July 11, 2006, the House of Representatives passed the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (H.R. 4411). This bill would attempt to prohibit financial transactions from taking place in connection with unlawful Internet gambling. If enacted into law, this bill may not stop illegal gambling because technology moves so fast and overseas operators have been very clever in devising alternate payment schemes to circumvent regulations. I am especially concerned about keeping illegal Internet gambling away from children, and I will be evaluating various proposals as they come before the Senate, including H.R. 4411.
Thank you again for contacting me. I will keep your thoughts, as well as those of all Nevadans, in mind as I serve our state in the Senate. Should you have any other questions or comments or would like to sign up for my monthly newsletter, please do not hesitated to either write or e-mail me via my website at
http://ensign.senate.gov.
Sincerely,
JOHN ENSIGN
United States Senator