Administration decision on Internet gambling may force Congress's hand

A Justice Department memo last month that cleared the way for states to legalize online poker and lotteries makes it more important than ever for Congress to clear up the issue on a federal level, supporters of legislation say.

The Justice Department said the 1961 Wire Act, a federal law barring certain types of betting using wire communications, only applies to gambling on sporting events. The memo, which was written in September but not released until late last month, was crafted in response to questions from New York and Illinois about the legality of selling state lottery tickets online. Supporters of legalizing online poker cheered the ruling but said it may create confusion and encourage the creation of a patchwork of state Internet gambling rules. Congress passed legislation in 2006 aimed at barring online gambling in the United States by prohibiting financial institutions from processing payments for online bets. "I think that this ruling creates more confusion than clarity in the Internet gambling debate," SAID American Gaming Association President and CEO Frank Fahrenkopf.