Sec. 301. Wire Act clarification and authorization of civil enforcement
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/bill/115/s/3793/is/section-301A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
Section 1084 of title 18, United States Code, is amended— in subsection (b)— by striking for the transmission of information assisting and inserting for the transmission of a sports wager accepted pursuant to an interstate sports wagering compact (as defined in section 3 of the Sports Wagering Market Integrity Act of 2018), layoff bet or wager, or information assisting ; and by adding at the end the following: For purposes of this section, the intermediate routing of electronic data shall not determine the location or locations in which a bet or wager, or information assisting in the placing of a bet or wager, is initiated, received, or otherwise made. ; by redesignating subsection
(e)as subsection (g); by inserting after subsection
(d)the following: In any case in which a State has reason to believe that an interest of the residents of the State has been or is being threatened or adversely affected by the conduct of a person that violates this section, the State may bring a civil action on behalf of those residents in an appropriate district court of the United States to enjoin the conduct. Before filing a complaint under paragraph (1), the State shall serve a copy of the complaint upon the Attorney General and the United States Attorney for the judicial district in which the complaint is to be filed. If prior service under clause
(i)is not feasible, the State shall serve the complaint on the Attorney General and the appropriate United States Attorney on the day on which the State files the complaint in an appropriate district court of the United States. A proceeding under paragraph
(1)shall be independent of, and not in lieu of, a criminal prosecution or any other proceeding under this section or any other law of the United States. The United States may— intervene in a civil action brought by a State under paragraph (1); and upon intervening— be heard on all matters arising in the civil action; and file petitions for appeal of a decision in the civil action. The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure shall apply to service of a complaint on the United States under this paragraph. For purposes of a civil action brought under paragraph (1), nothing in this chapter shall prevent an attorney general of a State from exercising the powers conferred on the attorney general by the laws of the State to— conduct investigations; administer oaths or affirmations; or compel— the attendance of witnesses; or the production of documentary or other evidence. A civil action brought under paragraph
(1)may be brought in— the district court of the United States for the judicial district in which the defendant— is found; is an inhabitant; or transacts business; or any judicial district in which venue is proper under section 1391 of title 28. In an action brought under paragraph (1), process may be served in any judicial district in which the defendant— is an inhabitant; or may be found. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to create any private right of action. A civil action may not be brought under paragraph
(1)against— the United States; or any employee or agent of the United States if the employee or agent is acting— in the usual course of business or employment; and within the scope of the official duties of the employee or agent. The Attorney General may bring an action against— a registrant of a nondomestic domain name used by an internet site dedicated to unlicensed sports wagering; or an owner or operator of an internet site dedicated to unlicensed sports wagering accessed through a nondomestic domain name. If through due diligence the Attorney General is unable to find a person described in clause
(i)or
(ii)of subparagraph (A), or no such person found has an address within a judicial district of the United States, the Attorney General may bring an in rem action against a nondomestic domain name used by an internet site dedicated to unlicensed sports wagering. In an action brought under this paragraph, the Attorney General shall, in the complaint or an amendment thereto, identify the entities that may be required to take actions under paragraph
(4)if an order issues under paragraph (2). On application of the Attorney General following the commencement of an action under paragraph (1), the court may issue a temporary restraining order, a preliminary injunction, or an injunction, in accordance with rule 65 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, against the nondomestic domain name used by an internet site dedicated to unlicensed sports wagering, or against a registrant of that domain name, or the owner or operator of the internet site dedicated to unlicensed sports wagering, to cease and desist from undertaking any further activity as an internet site dedicated to unlicensed sports wagering, if— the domain name is used within the United States to access the internet site; and the internet site— conducts business directed to residents of the United States; and violates this section. For purposes of determining whether an internet site conducts business directed to residents of the United States under subparagraph (A)(ii)(I), a court may consider, among other indicia, whether— there is evidence that the internet site is not intended to provide unlicensed sports wagering to users located in the United States; the internet site has reasonable measures in place to prevent unlicensed sports wagering from being accessed from the United States; and the internet site offers unlicensed sports wagering on sporting events that take place in the United States. Upon commencing an action under paragraph (1), the Attorney General shall send a notice of the alleged violation and intent to proceed under this subsection to the registrant of the domain name of the internet site— at the postal and e-mail address appearing in the applicable publicly accessible database of registrations, if any and to the extent those addresses are reasonably available; via the postal and e-mail address of the registrar, registry, or other domain name registration authority that registered or assigned the domain name, to the extent those addresses are reasonably available; and in any other such form as the court finds necessary, including as may be required by rule 4(f) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. For purposes of this subsection, the actions described in subparagraph
(A)shall constitute service of process. Upon commencing an action under paragraph (1), the Attorney General shall also provide notice to entities identified in the complaint, or any amendments thereto, that may be required to take action under paragraph (4). A Federal law enforcement officer, with the prior approval of the court, may serve a copy of a court order issued under paragraph
(2)on similarly situated entities within each class described in that paragraph, that have been identified in the complaint, or any amendments thereto, filed under paragraph (1). Proof of service made under clause
(i)shall be filed with the court. After being served with a copy of an order under this paragraph, an operator of a nonauthoritative domain name system server shall take the least burdensome technically feasible and reasonable measures designed to prevent the domain name described in the order from resolving to that domain name’s internet protocol address, except that— the operator shall not be required— other than as directed under this subclause, to modify its network, software, systems, or facilities; to take any measures with respect to domain name lookups not performed by its own domain name server or domain name system servers located outside the United States; or to continue to prevent access to a domain name to which access has been effectively disabled by other means; and nothing in this subclause shall affect the limitation on the liability of such an operator under section 512 of title 17. The Attorney General shall prescribe the text of the notice displayed to users or customers of an operator taking an action under this paragraph. The text prescribed under item
(aa)shall specify that the action is being taken pursuant to a court order obtained by the Attorney General. After being served with a copy of an order under this paragraph, a financial transaction provider shall take reasonable measures, as expeditiously as possible, designed to prevent, prohibit, or suspend its service from completing payment transactions involving customers located within the United States and the internet site associated with the domain name set forth in the order. After being served with a copy of an order under this paragraph, an internet advertising service that contracts with the internet site associated with the domain name set forth in the order to provide advertising to or for that site, or that knowingly serves advertising to or for that site, shall take technically feasible and reasonable measures, as expeditiously as possible, designed to— prevent its service from providing advertisements to the internet site associated with the domain name; or cease making available advertisements for that site, or paid or sponsored search results, links or other placements that provide access to the domain name. After being served with a copy of an order under this paragraph, a service provider of an information location tool shall take technically feasible and reasonable measures, as expeditiously as possible, to— remove or disable access to the internet site associated with the domain name set forth in the order; or not serve a hyptertext link to the internet site described in subclause (I). Except as provided under subparagraph (B)(i)(II), an entity taking an action described in this paragraph shall determine whether and how to communicate the action to the entity’s users or customers. For purposes of an action brought under paragraph (1)— the obligations of an entity described in this paragraph shall be limited to the actions set out in each clause of subparagraph
(B)of this paragraph that applies to the entity; and an order issued under paragraph
(2)may not impose any additional obligation on, or require any additional action by, the entity. No cause of action shall lie in any Federal or State court or administrative agency against any entity served with a copy of an order under this paragraph, or against any director, officer, employee, or agent thereof, for any act reasonably designed to comply with this subsection or reasonably arising from the order, other than in an action under paragraph (5). Any entity served with a copy of an order under this paragraph, and any director, officer, employee, or agent thereof, shall not be liable to any party for any acts reasonably designed to comply with this subsection or reasonably arising from the order, other than in an action under paragraph (5), and any actions taken by customers of the entity to circumvent any restriction on access to the internet domain instituted pursuant to this subsection or any act, failure, or inability to restrict access to an internet domain that is the subject of a court order issued under paragraph
(2)despite good faith efforts to do so by the entity shall not be used by any person in any claim or cause of action against the entity, other than in an action under paragraph (5). In order to compel compliance with this subsection, the Attorney General may bring an action for injunctive relief against any party served with a copy of a court order under paragraph
(4)that knowingly fails to comply with the order. The authority granted the Attorney General under subparagraph
(A)shall be the sole legal remedy for enforcing the obligations under this subsection of any entity described in paragraph (4). It shall be an affirmative defense in an action under subparagraph
(A)that— the defendant does not have the technical means to comply with the order without incurring an unreasonable economic burden; or the order is inconsistent with this section. A showing under subclause
(I)or
(II)of clause
(i)shall serve as a defense only to the extent of such inability to comply or inconsistency, respectively. At any time after the issuance of an order under paragraph (2), a motion to modify, suspend, or vacate the order may be filed by— any person, or owner or operator of property, bound by the order; any registrant of the domain name, or the owner or operator of the internet site subject to the order; any domain name registrar or registry that has registered or assigned the domain name of the internet site subject to the order; or any entity that has received a copy of an order under paragraph
(4)requiring the entity to take action prescribed under that paragraph. Relief under this paragraph shall be proper if the court finds that— the internet site associated with the domain name subject to the order is no longer, or never was, an internet site dedicated to unlicensed sports wagering; or the interests of justice require that the order be modified, suspended, or vacated. In making a relief determination under subparagraph (B), a court may consider whether the domain name has expired or has been reregistered by a different party. An entity identified under paragraph
(1)as an entity that may be required to take action under paragraph
(4)if an order issues under paragraph
(2)may intervene at any time in any action brought under paragraph (1), or in any action to modify, suspend, or vacate an order under this paragraph. Failure to intervene in an action shall not prohibit an entity notified of the action from subsequently seeking an order to modify, suspend, or terminate an order issued by the court under paragraph (2). The Attorney General, if alleging that an internet site previously adjudicated to be an internet site dedicated to unlicensed sports wagering is accessible or has been reconstituted at a different domain name, may bring a related action under paragraph
(1)against the additional domain name in the same judicial district as the previous action. ; and in subsection (g), as so redesignated— by striking as used in this section, the term and inserting the following: State means “Definitions .—As used in this section— the term State means ; and by inserting before paragraph (11), as so designated, the following: the term domain name has the meaning given the term in section 45 of the Trademark Act of 1946 ( 15 U.S.C. 1127 ); the term domain name system server means a server or other mechanism used to provide the internet protocol address associated with a domain name; the term financial transaction provider has the meaning given the term in section 5362 of title 31, United States Code; the term internet information location tool has the meaning given the term in section 231(e) of the Communications Act of 1934 ( 47 U.S.C. 231(e) ); the term internet advertising service means a service that for compensation sells, purchases, brokers, serves, inserts, verifies, or clears the placement of an advertisement, including a paid or sponsored search result, link, or placement that is rendered in viewable form for any period of time on an internet site; the term internet site means the collection of digital assets, including links, indexes, or pointers to digital assets, accessible through the internet that are addressed relative to a common domain name; the term internet site dedicated to unlicensed sports wagering means an internet site that, with respect to its business directed toward residents of the United States— has no significant use other than engaging in, enabling, or facilitating sports wagering in violation of this section; or is designed, operated, or marketed by its operator or persons operating in concert with the operator, and facts or circumstances suggest is used, primarily as a means for engaging in, enabling, or facilitating sports wagering in violation of this section; the term layoff bet or wager means a sports wager (as defined in section 3 of the Sports Wagering Market Integrity Act of 2018 ) placed by a sports wagering operator (as defined in such section) with another sports wagering operator; the term nondomestic domain name means a domain name for which the domain name registry that issued the domain name and operates the relevant top level domain, and the domain name registrar for the domain name, are not located in the United States; the term owner or operator , when used in connection with an internet site, include, respectively, any owner of a majority interest in, or any person with authority to operate, the internet site; and .
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