New Jersey rep preps pro-online gambling legislation; Reid done with online gambling

A New Jersey congressman says he’ll mount a fresh push to drag America’s “obsolete” federal gambling laws screaming and kicking into the 21st century.

On Friday, ESPN’s David Purdum reported that Rep. Frank Pallone Jr. (D-NJ) plans to introduce new legislation aimed at harmonizing the 1992 Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act, the 1961 Wire Act and the 2006 Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act.

Pallone (pictured, far right) told ESPN that federal gambling laws “need a wholesale review to see how they can actually work together and create a fairer playing field for all types of gambling, both online and offline, including sports betting and daily fantasy sports.” Conversations with stakeholders are already underway but Pallone offered no details on when his new legislation might be filed.

Pallone, the ranking Democrat on the House of Representatives’ Energy and Commerce Committee, has been attempting to change federal gambling laws for years. His latest effort was a committee hearing this spring that was supposed to address multiple forms of gambling but ended up focusing solely on DFS.