31 U.S.C. § 5361 — Congressional findings and purpose

Page 502 TITLE 31—MONEY AND FINANCE § 5355 1 So in original. Probably should be followed by a closing pa- renthesis. of Federal, State, and local cooperative law en- forcement and prosecutorial efforts in respond- ing to such criminal activity. (Added Pub. L. 105–310, § 2(a), Oct. 30, 1998, 112 Stat. 2948.) § 5355. Authorization of appropriations There are authorized to be appropriated the following amounts for the following fiscal years to carry out the purposes of this subchapter: For fiscal year: The amount authorized is: 1999 .............................. $5,000,000. 2000 .............................. $7,500,000. 2001 .............................. $10,000,000. 2002 .............................. $12,500,000. 2003 .............................. $15,000,000. 2004 .............................. $15,000,000. 2005 .............................. $15,000,000. (Added Pub. L. 105–310, § 2(a), Oct. 30, 1998, 112 Stat. 2948; amended Pub. L. 108–458, title VI, § 6102(b), Dec. 17, 2004, 118 Stat. 3745.) Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 2004—Pub. L. 108–458 in table inserted items speci- fying amounts authorized for fiscal years 2004 and 2005. SUBCHAPTER IV—PROHIBITION ON FUND- ING OF UNLAWFUL INTERNET GAMBLING § 5361. Congressional findings and purpose (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: (1) Internet gambling is primarily funded through personal use of payment system in- struments, credit cards, and wire transfers. (2) The National Gambling Impact Study Commission in 1999 recommended the passage of legislation to prohibit wire transfers to Internet gambling sites or the banks which represent such sites. (3) Internet gambling is a growing cause of debt collection problems for insured deposi- tory institutions and the consumer credit in- dustry. (4) New mechanisms for enforcing gambling laws on the Internet are necessary because traditional law enforcement mechanisms are often inadequate for enforcing gambling prohi- bitions or regulations on the Internet, espe- cially where such gambling crosses State or national borders. (b) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—No provision of this subchapter shall be construed as altering, limiting, or extending any Federal or State law or Tribal-State compact prohibiting, permit- ting, or regulating gambling within the United States. (Added Pub. L. 109–347, title VIII, § 802(a), Oct. 13, 2006, 120 Stat. 1952.) Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries INTERNET GAMBLING IN OR THROUGH FOREIGN JURISDICTIONS Pub. L. 109–347, title VIII, § 803, Oct. 13, 2006, 120 Stat. 1962, provided that: ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In deliberations between the United States Government and any foreign country on money laundering, corruption, and crime issues, the United States Government should— ‘‘(1) encourage cooperation by foreign governments and relevant international fora in identifying wheth- er Internet gambling operations are being used for money laundering, corruption, or other crimes; ‘‘(2) advance policies that promote the cooperation of foreign governments, through information sharing or other measures, in the enforcement of this Act [probably means title VIII of Pub. L. 109–347, which enacted this subchapter, see Short Title of 2006 Amendment note set out under section 5301 of this title]; and ‘‘(3) encourage the Financial Action Task Force on Money Laundering, in its annual report on money laundering typologies, to study the extent to which Internet gambling operations are being used for money laundering purposes. ‘‘(b) REPORT REQUIRED.—The Secretary of the Treas- ury shall submit an annual report to the Congress on any deliberations between the United States and other countries on issues relating to Internet gambling.’’ § 5362. Definitions In this subchapter: (1) BET OR WAGER.—The term ‘‘bet or wager’’— (A) means the staking or risking by any person of something of value upon the out- come of a contest of others, a sporting event, or a game subject to chance, upon an agree- ment or understanding that the person or another person will receive something of value in the event of a certain outcome; (B) includes the purchase of a chance or opportunity to win a lottery or other prize (which opportunity to win is predominantly subject to chance); (C) includes any scheme of a type de- scribed in section 3702 of title 28; (D) includes any instructions or informa- tion pertaining to the establishment or movement of funds by the bettor or cus- tomer in, to, or from an account with the business of betting or wagering; and (E) does not include— (i) any activity governed by the securi- ties laws (as that term is defined in sec- tion 3(a)(47) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 1 for the purchase or sale of se- curities (as that term is defined in section 3(a)(10) of that Act); (ii) any transaction conducted on or sub- ject to the rules of a registered entity or exempt board of trade under the Com- modity Exchange Act; (iii) any over-the-counter derivative in- strument; (iv) any other transaction that— (I) is excluded or exempt from regula- tion under the Commodity Exchange Act; or (II) is exempt from State gaming or bucket shop laws under section 12(e) of the Commodity Exchange Act or section 28(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934; (v) any contract of indemnity or guar- antee; (vi) any contract for insurance;