Federal Online Gaming May Get a Boost After Deficit Debate

The federal government has committed themselves to the reduction of the federal budget and could provide for the opening of discussions about the legalization of online gaming.

When congress reconvenes later this month the debate regarding the proposal of online gambling put forward by Harry Reid, the Senate Majority Leader for D- Nevada and Senator John Kyl for R-Arizona, is expected to resume. At present the bill only allows for online off-track betting and poker and excludes all other online gaming. Although the bill permits lottery sales online by the individual states it prohibits any international player pools.

Should the Federal government pass a law that permits online gambling under the Reid-Lyl terms for the bill in all of the 50 states, the British consulting company H2 Gambling Capital has estimated that the market will hit about $2.82 billion in just the 1st year, and further estimates that $4.57 billion three years later. This means by the third year approximately $91 million will be funneled into the government's pockets with taxes.

H2 has acknowledge that these figures could be less if many of the states opted out of online gambling through a provisions that is embedded in the bill.

During December 2011 the U.S Justice Department issued a ruling that clarified the Federal Wire Act of 1961 which prohibits transmissions interstate for sport betting and online gambling proponents. It hoped that it would clear the path for the various states to begin permissions and regulations for online gambling. With the bill currently throttled by the federal defect, advocates of gaming hope that the federal bill now has a chance.