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Rep. Barney Frank’s (D-Mass.) bill to legalize online gambling is facing some long odds.
Frank said last week that it’s unlikely the bipartisan measure, which has cleared his Financial Services Committee, will hit the House floor before the midterm elections.
That puts the legislation in some serious trouble, especially because the House has been leading the charge on this issue.
Frank said he wants to see a floor vote on the legislation but, noting the cramped House floor schedule, indicated it would be tough to move his bill this month.
“I’m not optimistic,” Frank told The Hill.
Frank said he doesn’t have a commitment from House leadership officials that they would move the bill before the lame-duck session.
The Massachusetts congressman noted that he has been talking to senators about moving a bill in the upper chamber.
“There was some discussion over there to step up the pace,” Frank said.
Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) has proposed a companion measure, but it hasn’t attracted any co-sponsors.
A Senate Democratic aide indicated it is highly unlikely the bill will move before the election. The staffer added there is a small chance it might move in the lame-duck session as an attachment to a jobs bill.
While the effort to legalize online gambling faces many obstacles, the legislation has a key asset: It raises revenue, making it an attractive offset.
Rep. Jim McDermott (D-Wash.), a senior member of the Ways and Means Committee who has been working with Frank, has introduced a bill that would set up the necessary infrastructure to tax legalized Internet gambling. McDermott’s bill would raise $72 billion over 10 years from new taxes on the industry.
Frank said he would like the House Ways and Means Committee to mark up McDermott’s bill so it could be paired with his.
Read more....
The Hill
Frank said last week that it’s unlikely the bipartisan measure, which has cleared his Financial Services Committee, will hit the House floor before the midterm elections.
That puts the legislation in some serious trouble, especially because the House has been leading the charge on this issue.
Frank said he wants to see a floor vote on the legislation but, noting the cramped House floor schedule, indicated it would be tough to move his bill this month.
“I’m not optimistic,” Frank told The Hill.
Frank said he doesn’t have a commitment from House leadership officials that they would move the bill before the lame-duck session.
The Massachusetts congressman noted that he has been talking to senators about moving a bill in the upper chamber.
“There was some discussion over there to step up the pace,” Frank said.
Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) has proposed a companion measure, but it hasn’t attracted any co-sponsors.
A Senate Democratic aide indicated it is highly unlikely the bill will move before the election. The staffer added there is a small chance it might move in the lame-duck session as an attachment to a jobs bill.
While the effort to legalize online gambling faces many obstacles, the legislation has a key asset: It raises revenue, making it an attractive offset.
Rep. Jim McDermott (D-Wash.), a senior member of the Ways and Means Committee who has been working with Frank, has introduced a bill that would set up the necessary infrastructure to tax legalized Internet gambling. McDermott’s bill would raise $72 billion over 10 years from new taxes on the industry.
Frank said he would like the House Ways and Means Committee to mark up McDermott’s bill so it could be paired with his.
Read more....
The Hill
