As I have said before, the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) – which was passed in 2006 and took effect June 1 of this year – does not ban online gambling in America. In fact, there is no federal ban of online gambling. There are several states in the U.S. that have online gambling bans, though. Washington is one of those states.

In the state of Washington, online gambling – including poker – is illegal and engaging in online poker is a felony. A felony!

The Poker Players Alliance – one of the largest online poker lobbies in the world – is challenging Washington’s law in court. Lee Rousso, State Director of the PPA, challenges that the law violates the Interstate Commerce Act. According to Rousso, the law states that no state can pass legislation that discriminates against a section of a particular industry. He argues that Washington’s law discriminates against the online section of the gambling industry. In other words, you can’t allow people to play poker in a land-based casino and not allow them to play it at an online casino.

I’m no lawyer, so I’ll avoid trying to interpret a small section of a law passed in 1887. The PPA is fighting the Washington law on the basis that it violates federal law by unfairly discriminating against the online gambling industry. So far the case has been heard by a trial court and then an appeals court. It is now set to be heard by the Washington State Supreme Court. The outcome of this case should definitely be interesting.

Tags: gambling legislation, Interstate Commerce Act, Online Casino, online poker, poker laws, Poker Players Alliance, PPA, Supreme Court, Washington gambling law, Washington poker