The Internet Gambling Prohibition Act, which would ban all forms of wagering on the Internet but as currently written would exempt pari-mutuel wagering from that restriction, was not considered by the House Judiciary Committee during a markup session in Washington on Tuesday. The bill, however, is expected to be debated when hearings resume on Wednesday.The Senate version of the bill was passed last year following intense lobbying efforts by the American Horse Council to add an amendment protecting pari-mutuel wagering. Internet-based forms of wagering are seen as a crucial revenue stream for horse racing in the near future.

Efforts to get the bill to the full House floor have been complicated recently by calls for additional subcommittee hearings. Those delays, combined with a United States Department of Justice opinion stating that no forms of gambling should be exempt from restrictions in the bill, have raised concerns that attempts may be made in the House to lift racing's exemption.