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In a move that will give hope to the thousands of Americans left high and dry by online poker’s Black Friday, U.S. Representative Joe Barton (R – TX) recently unveiled a new piece of legislation aimed at legalizing, taxing and regulating online poker in the U.S. The bill, which is largely similar to the one offered up by Barney Frank in 2009, proposes the creation of a regulatory body tasked with overseeing deposit methods, preventing cheating and verifying the age of registered players.

In accordance with the terms of the bill, individual poker sites would need to secure licensing from one or more states, as well as the U.S. Department of Commerce. States would be allowed to opt out of the legislation and maintain their current post-Black Friday status, if they desired. The bill would also prevent credit cards from being used as a viable deposit option.

Representative Barton described poker as a game requiring both “strategy and skill,” and went on to state that, while real money poker remains legal, processing the transactions necessary to facilitate real money play is not. The bill aims to correct this exact problem.

Eleven co-sponsors have already signed onto the bill, including a bi-partisan mix of five Republicans and six Democrats. Shelley Berkley, Ron Paul and Barney Frank are among the current supporters. The Poker Players Alliance (PPA) has also voiced its support of the new bill, thanking Representative Barton for his dedication to the U.S. online poker community at large.

So why, exactly, are so many legislators looking to legalize online poker and effectively reverse the effects of Black Friday? The answer, as expected, is money. According to Barton’s initial estimates, the federal government stands to gain $3 billion in tax revenue every year by creating a legalized and regulated online poker environment.

Here’s hoping that the bill continues to gain support in Washington. A shorter name might help, unless you find “Internet Gambling Prohibition, Poker Consumer Protection, and Strengthening UIGEA Act of 2011″ to be intuitive.