Vice President elect Mike Pence has not been one to favour online gambling in America and 10 state attorney generals are counting on the new Trump government to restore the Interstate Wire Act and issue a federal ban on online gambling.
What has surprised many in the online gambling community is the fact that one of the ten attorney generals who have signed the petition to ban online gambling is Nevada AG Adam Laxalt. Currently online gambling is only permitted in the states of Nevada, Delaware and New Jersey.
The other nine attorney generals who have signed the petition are Marty Jackley (South Dakota), Bill Schuette (Michigan), Jeff Landry (Louisiana), Sean Reyes (Utah), Alan Wilson (South Carolina), Wayne Stenehjem (North Dakota), Douglas Peterson (Nebraska), Ken Paxton (Texas) and Scott Pruitt (Oklahoma).
Billionaire Sheldon Adelson who is the chairman of the Las Vegas Sands Corp which owns multiple casino resorts in Nevada has been the biggest opponent of online gambling legislation in the country and has personally financed the Coalition to Stop Internet Gambling. His campaign has helped in slowing down online gambling legalization in other states and could turn out to be more power now that Nevada AG Laxalt has backed the ban on online gambling.
Dina Titus, the Poker Players Alliance (PPA) representative for Nevada stated that the letter by Laxalt contained a number of inaccuracies and allegations that were unfair. In a statement, Titus said
For example, the letter cites a study of youth in Connecticut and their online gaming habits. Unfortunately, the letter fails to note that online gaming is not legal in Connecticut, so any adolescent online gaming would be done by utilizing offshore or illegal internet sites.
A.G. Burnett, the chairman for the Nevada Gaming Control Board also expressed his disappointment over the fact that AG Laxalt did not consult with his clients before throwing his support behind the bill to ban online gambling. Burnett stated that once Nevada legalized online gambling, the state nor the industry have not encountered any problems and the online gambling operators were fully complying with the regulations rolled out by the state.
Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval who is a supporter of the online gambling industry is not in support of the letter that Laxalt has signed. Gov. Sandoval wants Nevada to adopt the latest technology in the industry and help Nevada to pioneer change in the casino industry.
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