Utah considers supporting Online Gaming regulations
3rd March, 2009
It has been revealed that the state of Utah is contemplating joining forces with Representative Barney Frank to regulate the Online Gaming Industry.
At the moment, the UIGEA (Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act) prohibits any kind of regulation that would help stop scammers and protect the millions of US citizens that still gamble online.
"These sites are unregulated, so there are all kinds of unscrupulous behavior going on,' said Utah Attorney general Mark Shurtleff, on KSL Newsradio, "There's no way, you know, right now if you go online and play poker, unless it's exactly head to head, peer to peer, that the games aren't rigged in a way that's going to make you lose."
The problem that Utah faces in supporting Frank’s Bill is that the state does not want to compromise its stance on land based casinos.
Utah wants to support the regulation of online gambling but it doesn’t want to support other forms of gambling in the state.
If any form of gambling became legal in Utah, Indian tribes could be allowed to open casinos- something that Utah seems keen to avoid.
By Annabel
