On Hold 'Till June 1st
A more refined version of the UIGEA that was scheduled be put in effect by the start of December has now been put on hold 'till June 1st. The delay of the act by Secretary of the Treasury Timothy Geithner is a response to letters that were sent by the Poker Players Alliance (PPA), the National Thoroughbred Racing Association and the Greyhound Track Operators Association.

But the one letter that seemed to really bring the point across was the one sent by Rep. Barney Frank, head of the House Financial Services Committee and a man who is gathering a big following from the online gaming community. Frank, who has been fighting the UIGEA along with Senator Robert Melendez, sent in a letter that was co-signed by 18 members of Congress and it clearly shows the pull that he has when it comes to issues like this one.

Said iMega Chairman Joe Brennan: "It's very unusual for any department of the government to essentially forestall an act of Congress. This is a testament to the power of Congressmen Frank."

In the end, the U.S Treasury Secretary and the Federal Reserve released a joint statement, saying that "Commentators expressed concern that the Act and the final regulation do not provide a clear definition of 'unlawful Internet gambling,' which is central to compliance".

New Hearings December 3rd
As for Rep. Frank, he's moving quickly with his anti-UIGEA bills and reports are that he has scheduled a hearing for December 3rd at 10 AM. PPA executive director John Pappas was "pleasantly surprised" by Franks' move and thinks that he is "sending a strong message to regulators" about changing this law.

The bill that everyone will be focused on is obviously the 'Internet Gambling Regulation and Reinforcement Act' which has already gotten 63 co-sponsors. Should this eventually pass, it will finally put a framework into place that will regulate and license online gambling.