Having an Internet gambling business is illegal under the Illegal Gambling Business Act (IGBA). An illegal Internet gambling business is a business that is in existence for a period of more than thirty days and has gross revenue of more than $2,000 per day. Moreover, an illegal Internet gambling business cannot accept payment. An illegal Internet gambling business is also a crime under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act.
The United States has the authority to enforce its federal gambling laws on a federal level. However, in the past there have been several constitutional challenges to the enforcement of these laws. In particular, the Commerce Clause has been the subject of several debates. Some of these have involved questions of whether the legislature has the power to pass the law. Using the Commerce Clause to levy penalties against gambling operators has received little attention, especially when it comes to the First Amendment.
In the United States, there are seven federal criminal statutes that are associated with illegal Internet gambling. These are the Wire Act, the UIGEA, the Travel Act, the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, the O’Brien Act, the RICO Act, and the Illegal Gambling Business Act. In addition, there are many state laws on the books regulating the conduct of gambling.
The Travel Act, the Wire Act, and the UIGEA all have some similarities and differences. The Travel Act, for example, prohibits money laundering of illegal gambling proceeds. The Travel Act also prohibits the promotion of unlawful gambling.