Also, the U.S. Supreme Court rejected an appeal this week of a man who ran an Internet sports betting business - a case that had been seen as a potential vehicle for the court to take a new look at online betting.

And on June 14, Citibank, America's largest credit card issuer, announced its agreement to block online gambling transactions using its credit cards.

Control Board Chairman Dennis Neilander said the developments in Congress and the Supreme Court could hinder efforts to modify the Wire Wager Act of 1961. The Bush administration hasn't taken a position on the Wire Act, but the Justice Department believes it bars Internet gambling.

Neilander also said the split vote in the Judiciary Committee on the Internet gambling bill pushed by Rep. Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., suggests it might stall in its unamended form.

"The leadership in the House can do what it wants, but there's some indication the House won't act on the bill if there isn't broad support for it," he said.

Warren, reporting Thursday to the Nevada Gaming Commission, said the amendments stripped from Goodlatte's bill would have provided exemptions for Internet wagering on horse races, state lotteries and casino wagering between states in which gambling is legal.

With those "carve-outs," favored by various gambling interests cut from the bill, he said a floor vote in the House on what's left is unlikely.

In the U.S. Supreme Court, Warren said justices decided Monday not to hear the appeal of Jay Cohen of San Francisco, who ran a sports betting business in Antigua.

Cohen was sentenced to 21 months in prison in 2000 for illegal gambling. Prosecutors said it was the first use of the U.S. Wire Wager Act to shut down an Internet gambling operation.

Cohen had appealed to the nation's highest court after losing in the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York.

A recent U.S. District Court ruling in Louisiana favored Internet casino gambling, but that decision is on appeal.

Even if federal opposition is overcome, Nevada's Internet gambling law, passed by the state Legislature and signed in June 2001 by Gov. Kenny Guinn, has stringent requirements.

The Gaming Commission must ensure any interactive gambling systems are secure and reliable and find there's "reasonable assurance" that minors won't make Internet bets and that such betting will be limited to jurisdictions where it's legal.

Other public policy issues include problem gambling, money-laundering, computer hackers and economic equity among casino operators. And regulators say the amount of oversight that would be needed raises another concern.

While acknowledging there are legal hurdles, casino executives have said they see a huge untapped market for licensed Internet gambling.

Experts estimate that revenues from Internet gambling - largely conducted by offshore companies because of the current U.S. ban - could reach $6 billion by 2003.

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