NJ Senator Introduces Online Skills Game Bill
Online poker has a new champion in Washington D.C. Senator Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) introduced legislation last week that could allow the licensing of online poker and other skill-based online games in the United States.
The bill, S. 8309 Internet Skill Games Regulation, is meant "to amend title 31, United States Code, to provide for the licensing by the Secretary of the Treasury of Internet poker and other games that are predominantly of skill, to provide for consumer protections on the Internet, to enforce the tax code, and for other purposes."
If passed, S. 8309 would allow the U.S. government to set up a system to regulate and license online poker, providing better protection for U.S. online poker players. It would also set up a system to tax online poker, bringing in millions of dollars in revenue for the government.
Menendez's legislation goes hand in hand with Rep. Barney Frank's (D-Mass.) efforts in the House to get legislation passed to legalize online gambling and regulate it in the United States. Frank has been working to overturn the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act since it was passed in 2006.