A detailed letter signed by four members of Congress was sent to both the Treasury Department and Federal Reserve System on Wednesday insisting that the departments clarify the rules and regulations that will be used to enforce the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA). 

An excerpt from the letter is as follows:

“As proposed, these regulations do not provide clear guidance to the public, in particular those who engage in online skill games, or regulated industries regarding what constitutes ‘unlawful Internet gambling’” the letter said. “We believe that implementing such vague law and regulations, while holding the public and regulated industries liable for noncompliance, is an abdication of federal government’s responsibility to both the public and regulated industries. In addition, vague UIGEA law and regulations could be unnecessarily burdensome and costly to public and particularly small businesses.”

To sum it up, the UIGEA calls for banks to stop transactions between its customers and any companies that provide “unlawful internet gambling”.  The act was passed in 2006 when it was quietly attached to the “Safe Port Act of 2006″ by Republican Congressman Bill Frist.  However, the last-minute bill failed to identify what exactly constitutes “unlawful internet gambling”.

The act calls for banks to monitor and cease any suspicious activity that could be illegal, yet with no clear defnition, many perfectly legal transactions could be blocked.  The banking industry has expressed its concerns on the matter as the law is extremely intrusive and far-reaching, yet vague and ill-conceived. The Treasury Department and Federal Reserve System also has voiced its concerns, as the vagueness of the law has caused them problems drafting the rules. Both departments stated that they doubted banks would be able to follow the law because of its ambiguity.