For Immediate Release: July 13, 2000

San Francisco, CA – Despite changes announced Tuesday, the Internet Gambling Prohibition Act (HR3125) remains practically impossible to enforce and threatens both the Internet and the liberty of American citizens.

"The legislation -- and the compromise -- boil down to nothing more than political posturing, because the United States could not enforce this law," said Sonia Arrison, director of the Center for Freedom and Technology at the Pacific Research Institute.

Tuesday's changes to the Act by Commerce Subcommittee Chairman Rep. Billy Tauzin (R-LA) and bill sponsor Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) were made to quiet complaints that the bill actually would expand some forms of gambling.

"Hundreds of Internet gambling operators are based offshore," said Arrison. " If this law passes, all gambling sites will go offshore, and there’s nothing the United States will be able to do about it," she said.

According to Arrison, the decentralized nature of the Net means that users will never be prevented from accessing off-limits sites. If sites were blocked, gaming operators could change their Internet addresses or users could simply route their browser’s request through a foreign server.

"This ban is an attempt to substitute regulation for individual choice," explained Arrison. "It would do little to stop Internet gambling, and it would create major problems for the Internet industry and consumers. Internet Service Providers (ISPs) would be forced to search for and block illegal gambling sites. Only a few large ISPs could afford to act as the government’s Internet police, so smaller ISPs would have to close down."

The results, said Arrison, would be reduced competition, higher prices, and poor service.

"In a year when politicians have been talking about allowing the Net to prosper, it’s ironic that this heavy-handed regulation is being proposed," she said.

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The Pacific Research Institute for Public Policy is a non-profit organization dedicated to the promotion of the principles of individual freedom and personal responsibility. The Institute believes these principles are best encouraged through policies that emphasize a free economy, private initiative, and limited government. By focusing on public policy issues such as health care, welfare, education, and the environment, the Institute strives to foster a better understanding of the principles of a free society among leaders in government, academia, the media, and the business community.