Internet gambling ban shelved, questions raised by tribe

Wednesday, Aug. 29, 2001 | 11:17 a.m.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Proposed legislation to ban online gambling in California died Tuesday when a Senate committee voted to shelve it for additional study.

The Senate Governmental Organization Committee took the action after questions were raised about its scope, enforcement and whether Indian gaming should be excluded from the ban.

The bill's author, Assemblyman Dario Frommer, D-Los Angeles, reacted angrily, calling AB 1229 a "measured response to a growing gambling epidemic."

"The only winners in today's action were Las Vegas' biggest casinos, a well-connected Indian tribe, and hundreds of unscrupulous online gambling sites," Frommer said. "The losers are average Californians who are literally a mouse click away from losing their life savings (or) homes to shady online casinos."

Frommer's measure would prod more financial institutions into rejecting Internet casino credit card transactions, and send a message to Las Vegas casinos, many of which plan to offer games online, that they aren't welcome in California homes.

But Barbara Risling, representing the Coyote Valley Band of Pomo Indians, questioned why Indian tribes should be barred from offering their games online.

"We want to keep our options open," she said after the hearing. "We're not saying we want to (offer online gambling) ... But we don't want to have our hands tied for the future."