Attempts to Ban Online Gambling in the US Will Continue Next Year

Even though a recent attempt to squeeze an online gambling ban into federal laws recently failed this year, it appears that the measure is slated to come back next year, with a prominent Democrat supporting the measure.

The Restoration of America's Wire Act failed to get snuck through in a federal spending bill, but Republicans are set to come back to the issue next year when they will hold a majority in both the House and Senate. The bill is backed by gambling billionaire Sheldon Adelson, who donated heavily to the Republican party in recent elections.

It appears that the bill will have a prominent supporter on the other side of the aisle though, as Senator Harry Reid has revealed that he will support a bill to outlaw online gambling in an attempt to carve out a niche for online poker.

Speaking to the Las Vegas Review-Journal Reid said:

• That the bill will be introduced in Congress next year.

• That he supports a federal online gambling ban, but wants to have online poker remain legal. Speaking about his support for a ban Reid said, "I think it is an invitation to crime. I think it is hard to control for crime when you’ve got brick and mortar places, let alone something up in the sky someplace, and it is very bad for children.”

• He thinks online poker is only going to be legalized if he can guarantee that other forms of online gambling will be outlawed.

The revelation that Reid will support such a measure is a troubling sign for the online gambling industry in the United States, which is seeing three states currently offering some form of digital wagering. Casino Listings will update this story as more developments arise.