Congressman Robert Wexler's Bill Gains Another Supporter

On December 23rd, 2007, Congressman Robert Wexler got a major push this week for his proposed bill which aims to make skill games like poker, mah-jongg, bridge and chess exempted from the current UIGEA ban in the U.S. when Representative Robert E. Andrews throw his support to the bill.

Congressman Wexler's HR 2610, "the Skill Game Protection Act" would modify the language to the existing laws like the UIGEA, which will then define poker as a skill game when you play poker online. It will allow players 18 years old and above to play these games on the Internet. The bill will also implement a system to tax and regulate skill games so that these games will remain honest and to prevent underage players from accessing the games.

Representative Andrews is a well-known politician and a former lawyer and law professor. He is currently in his 10th term as a Congressman with political experience in Education, Learning and Competitiveness, Labor, where he is the chairman. He is also a member of the House Armed Services committee and the subcommittees on Oversight and Investigations, Terrorism and Unconventional Threats and most importantly, the House Budget Committee.

Wexler's Bill has been steadily getting support although it has been generally overshadowed by the Internet Gambling Regulation and Enforcement Act (IGREA), HR 2046, which is proposed by Congressman Barney Frank. The bill also seeks to regulate online gaming in the U.S.

January 03, 2008
Jeremy Evans