WASHINGTON – Congressman Spencer Bachus (AL-6), Ranking Member on the House Financial Services Committee, issued the following statement on legislation introduced today that would allow illegal on-line gambling criminals to prey on America’s youth.

Bachus is an author of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) of 2006, which banned the use of credit cards and other financial instruments from being used for illegal on-line gambling.

“Illegal off-shore Internet gambling sites are a criminal enterprise and allowing them to operate unfettered in the United States would present a clear danger to our youth, who are subject to becoming addicted to gambling at an early age. If you put a computer in a teenager's bedroom, or in a student's dorm room at college, it's a temptation that many fall prey to. In fact, studies have shown that earlier one begins gambling, the more likely it is he or she will become a compulsive problem gambler.

“In the 109^th Congress, Democrats and Republicans worked together to pass commonsense, bipartisan legislation aimed at combating criminals from preying upon American’s youth. That legislation was supported by a broad coalition that included college presidents, the American Bankers Association, the American Psychiatric Association, and major sports organizations.”