/PRNewswire/ -- Voters finally win! After nearly a year of research and development, America's first non-partisan "online" Federal, State and Local Referendum Voting System will be launching on Independence Day, July 4th 2011. In addition to Referendum Voting, this system provides a multitude of valuable voter services not found anywhere else. This system is designed to be advisory, and would assist our elected officials in understanding the exact will of the people. In addition to a 2010 survey by the Washington Post and Harvard University, various public opinion polls show that placing referendums on a U.S. national ballot would be popular with the American public.
"Democracy was founded on our faith in something called 'the will of the people.' And without asking the voters, politicians seem to always know exactly what their will is. That's why 80 percent of voters believe our government operates without the consent of the people," states AmericaVotes Founder and President Chuck Kirkpatrick. "However, on July 4th 2011 that will change. Voters will have another reason to celebrate Independence Day, and that is the first non-partisan online mechanism that allows them to participate in the governance of America," he adds.
Over a three-year period, AmericaVotes is projecting 150 jobs and $740 million in local economic impact. "Our original goal was to locate our company on Florida's Space Coast, but due to a lack of interest and assistance from the Governor's office and Enterprise Florida, it appears that will not happen. Six states have been aggressively competing for our business, but unfortunately, Florida was not one of them. It is a travesty for the Space Coast families," adds Kirkpatrick.
The AmericaVotes system is well researched, and has received great reviews from Google Ventures, the Florida Institute of Technology Marketing Department, StateNet, and the Economic Development Departments in six states. The long-term goal of AmericaVotes is to enable "online" voting in actual State and Federal Elections, which would provide permanent voting records, greatly increase voter participation, and save the states and localities millions of dollars.
According to Karen Wilson, Vice President of Marketing, "Our 'Personal Political Management System' is designed to make politics easy for the average citizen. We also have special features for our lawmakers and their parties, including detailed Voter Trend reports and Instant Messaging capabilities to all their constituents."
AmericaVotes will provide a free membership and has an estimated market of 279 million registered and eligible-to-vote citizens including youth ages 13 and up, and 35 million businesses. Led by an award-winning national marketing firm, their initial focus will be on the 15 key battleground states.
The AmericaVotes System will be released in an English and Spanish version, and have plans for an iPhone application. Future global marketing will include 28 other Democratic countries.
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Showing posts with label online. Show all posts
Showing posts with label online. Show all posts
Friday, April 15, 2011
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Historic Internet Gambling Regulation Bill Overwhelmingly Passes Committee with Bi-Partisan Support
/PRNewswire/ -- Today the House Committee on Financial Services took a critical step forward in passing Internet gambling legislation by voting to approve the Internet Gambling Regulation and Consumer Protection and Enforcement Act (H.R. 2267), legislation introduced by Committee Chairman Barney Frank (D-MA). The legislation, which passed by a 41-22 vote would regulate Internet gambling activity in the U.S. and require licensed operators to put in place safeguards to protect against underage and problem gambling.
"The Committee's bi-partisan vote to approve Chairman Frank's legislation is nothing short of historic," said Michael Waxman, spokesperson for the Safe and Secure Internet Gambling Initiative. "With Congress bitterly divided and only a handful of bi-partisan bills coming out of the Financial Services Committee, we're pleased Committee members from both sides of the aisle were able to come together to advance this important legislation."
During today's mark-up there were several amendments introduced from both sides of the aisle. Rep. John Campbell (R-CA) offered, and the Committee approved, an amendment that would further strengthen the legislation's already strict consumer protections, including a requirement for licensed operators to have each customer choose his or her loss limits before being able to play on-line. Rep. Campbell's amendment also requires licensees to protect customers by ensuring the customer privacy and security and protecting against fraud and money laundering.
Chairman Frank's legislation, introduced in May 2009, would establish a regulatory and enforcement framework for licensed gambling operators to accept bets and wagers from individuals in the U.S. Beyond an array of required consumer protections, the legislation reinforces the rights of each state to determine whether or not to allow Internet gambling activity for people accessing the Internet within the state and to apply other restrictions on the activity as determined necessary.
As a companion to Rep. Frank's bill, the Internet Gambling Regulation and Tax Enforcement Act of 2010 (H.R. 4976) introduced by Rep. Jim McDermott (D-WA) in March 2010, would ensure the collection of license fees and taxes on regulated Internet gambling activities.
Generating significant attention are the economic benefits of online gambling regulation. According to a Joint Committee on Taxation tax revenue analysis, regulated Internet gambling is expected to generate as much as $42 billion in federal government revenue over its first 10 years. Additionally, a recent analysis by H2 Gambling Capital predicts that Internet gambling regulation would create as many as 32,000 jobs over its first five years. There would also be additional economic benefits associated with jobs creation.
"The momentum of today's vote and growing bi-partisan support for online gambling regulation demonstrates to congressional leaders in the House and Senate that this issue is a priority and should be addressed," said Waxman. "Leaving in place a failed prohibition should no longer be the government's misguided policy approach, leaving millions of Americans vulnerable as they continue to find a way to gamble online in a thriving underground marketplace."
The legislation has drawn the support of 69 bi-partisan co-sponsors. Support for the legislation was also announced last week by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the Financial Services Roundtable and the National Association of Federal Credit Unions.
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"The Committee's bi-partisan vote to approve Chairman Frank's legislation is nothing short of historic," said Michael Waxman, spokesperson for the Safe and Secure Internet Gambling Initiative. "With Congress bitterly divided and only a handful of bi-partisan bills coming out of the Financial Services Committee, we're pleased Committee members from both sides of the aisle were able to come together to advance this important legislation."
During today's mark-up there were several amendments introduced from both sides of the aisle. Rep. John Campbell (R-CA) offered, and the Committee approved, an amendment that would further strengthen the legislation's already strict consumer protections, including a requirement for licensed operators to have each customer choose his or her loss limits before being able to play on-line. Rep. Campbell's amendment also requires licensees to protect customers by ensuring the customer privacy and security and protecting against fraud and money laundering.
Chairman Frank's legislation, introduced in May 2009, would establish a regulatory and enforcement framework for licensed gambling operators to accept bets and wagers from individuals in the U.S. Beyond an array of required consumer protections, the legislation reinforces the rights of each state to determine whether or not to allow Internet gambling activity for people accessing the Internet within the state and to apply other restrictions on the activity as determined necessary.
As a companion to Rep. Frank's bill, the Internet Gambling Regulation and Tax Enforcement Act of 2010 (H.R. 4976) introduced by Rep. Jim McDermott (D-WA) in March 2010, would ensure the collection of license fees and taxes on regulated Internet gambling activities.
Generating significant attention are the economic benefits of online gambling regulation. According to a Joint Committee on Taxation tax revenue analysis, regulated Internet gambling is expected to generate as much as $42 billion in federal government revenue over its first 10 years. Additionally, a recent analysis by H2 Gambling Capital predicts that Internet gambling regulation would create as many as 32,000 jobs over its first five years. There would also be additional economic benefits associated with jobs creation.
"The momentum of today's vote and growing bi-partisan support for online gambling regulation demonstrates to congressional leaders in the House and Senate that this issue is a priority and should be addressed," said Waxman. "Leaving in place a failed prohibition should no longer be the government's misguided policy approach, leaving millions of Americans vulnerable as they continue to find a way to gamble online in a thriving underground marketplace."
The legislation has drawn the support of 69 bi-partisan co-sponsors. Support for the legislation was also announced last week by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the Financial Services Roundtable and the National Association of Federal Credit Unions.
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