December 1st Approaches, PPA Requests Player Support

Chris Grove : November 16th, 2009

The date that has been on the minds of poker players for quite some time – December 1st, 2009 – is fast approaching. That’s the date that banks will be forced into compliance with the regulations established by the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA). With the deadline looming, players likely have a surplus of questions regarding what, if anything, they can do do help prevent the deadline from occurring.

If you’re not familiar with the December 1st deadline and what it might mean for online poker, we’ve got a list of frequently asked questions here.

Most observers agree than the sole hope for delaying the deadline at this point exists in the form of a petition submitted by the PPA to the Treasury and Federal Reserve Board asking those agencies to extend the date for forced UIGEA compliance. The petition, authored by the PPA and a variety of horse racing industry groups, was supplemented by a letter of support signed by 19 members of Congress.

Some readers might recall that Barney Frank had introduced a bill aimed at delaying the implementation of the UIGEA. At this point, it’s clear that Frank’s bill has absolutely zero chance of getting anywhere near a vote before the December 1st deadline, so a legislative solution is out of the picture. That leaves the PPA petition.

What can players do? The PPA has introduced a new Twitter-based avenue for advocacy called Tweet For Poker. Visit it here. The interactive page allows you to locate the accounts of your representatives and send them a prewritten tweet regarding poker. The tweet itself doesn’t address the petition directly.

If you prefer a more traditional method, the PPA is also organizing a good old-fashioned letter writing campaign aimed at punishing those in Congress who are working to push the UIGEA compliance through and praising those who have spoken up in support of poker. Links to some specific calls to action below:

Thank Congressman Polis for His Support (CO)

Tell Senator Kyl You Support Poker! (AZ)

Tell Congressman Spencer Bachus You Support Poker!

You can obviously take the generic template of any of these and apply it to your own local representative.

Not a member of the PPA? You don’t have to be a member to make your voice heard, but by being a member you’ll help support the cause and probably stay more informed. Join here.