After the Easter holidays, he plans to bring in a new legislation on internet gambling, says US Congressman Barney Frank (D-MA). In the interview to The Hill, he noted that the week of April 20 is the probable time frame for the tabling of his new bill.

Frank’s bill, which is supposed to lay down a comprehensive licensing and regulatory framework for the internet gambling industry, will be a standalone bill and not a rider to critical legislation, says The Hill. Frank told the Washington DC publication that unlike the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA), which was passed during the last days of the US Congressional Session of 2006 sans any discussions or voting, he wants to pass the current one with hearings, discussions, and votes such that everybody’s voice/concern is heard and considered before eventually the bill becomes a law.

Frank had earlier said that he’d introduce the legislation in March. But the current financial crisis meant that his and other bills are delayed from being introduced in the Congress for deliberation. He told The Hill, “After the break, definitely in April.”

A little bit of peep into the profile of US Congressman Barney Frank. He has long been an advocate of internet gambling on Capitol Hill. Also, he was the author of R 2046, the Internet Gambling Regulation and Enforcement Act, introduced in April 2007, but was not acted upon for various reasons. It is now must be reintroduced for consideration. In September 2008, the second version of the Payments System Protection Act (HR 6870) was approved by the House Financial Services Committee by a margin of 30-19. The act would have explained what is legal and illegal under the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act. However, the economic crisis set in soon after, and the bill was pushed to the backburner for later consideration, something that had not happened yet.

Even though, the final text of Barney’s proposed legislation is yet to be out, The Hill speculated that it may contain sections that call for lifting the ban on Internet gambling, something the Republicans had strived hard to institute after some heavy lobbying from conservative Christian groups, when they were in majority in the Capitol Hill. Frank’s new legislation would most likely tax internet gambling, alongside regulating it, thus providing new streams of revenue to the Federal Government. A recent study conducted by PwC showed that proper taxing and regulation of gambling industry in the US could yield up to $52 billion in revenue for the U.S. Government, over a period of ten years.

There is this argument from some circles that only the bill that legitimizes online poker stands a good chance of passing than a multi-pronged one such as Frank’s. In July 2007, Congressman Robert Wexler (D-FL) brought in HR 2610, the Skill Game Protection Act, which would have relieved bridge, poker, chess, mah jong, and other similar player versus player games from the purview of UIGEA and Wire Act. In fact, this bill has created a vital distinction between online casinos, where the action is between the players and the house, and online poker, wherein the contestants fight it out against each other. But, HR 2610 also met the same fate of HR 2046, and is now need to be reintroduced.

The regulations of the UIGEA had come into effect on Jan 19th, as a ‘midnight rule’ by the outgoing Bush Administration. As per the rule, all banks and other financial institutions must comply with the law by December 1st this year.