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Brazil – Brazil’s House of Deputies could debate gambling bill this month
By Phil - 4 February 2022
President of the Brazilian Chamber of Deputies Arthur Lira says that gambling legislation will be at the forefront of the parliamentary agenda now that the parliamentary recess has ended.
In a meeting in Brasilia, held last week with the rapporteur for the proposal to regulate gambling Felipe Carreras, Lira stated that the project will be voted on as soon as lawmakers return to work.
In December deputies approved the request to deal with bill PL 442/91, which legalizes casino and other types of gambling in the country, as a matter of urgency. The motion was passed after President of the Chamber of Deputies Arthur Lira held meetings and negotiated between the leaders of different political groups including the opposition. Lira announced that Gambling Bill PL 442/91 would be debated in the House of Deputies in February 2022. Legislators will be able to submit amendments to the bill before then.
Last month Deputy Otoni de Paula asked Arthur Lira to rule that gambling bill 442/1991 should be voted on in person and not remotely, after the summer holiday. Due to a new surge in COVID-19 infections, Lira announced that the sessions would be held remotely, but Otoni, who is against the pro gambling bill, said that he wanted an in person session so that lawmakers could debate the bill more fully.
“The legalization of gambling in Brazil is a very sensitive topic for us Christians and conservatives. It is a topic that needs to be widely discussed. Therefore, I appeal to the common sense of our president Arthur Lira: if we keep the work back remotely, it is not good to discuss an important PEC (proposed constitutional amendment) like this with the deputies in their homes,” he said
Bill 442/1991(PL 442/91) is the Chamber of Deputies bill. If it is approved, the final text of PL 442/91 will replace as many as 20 other gambling related projects all of which have been discussed over many years. House Bill No. 442/1991 permits casinos in integrated resorts. Each state would have up to three casino establishments, depending on the state’s population. In the Chamber of Deputies gaming law would also allow for traditional bingo and video-bingo in casinos, bingo halls, jockey clubs, and football stadiums. Meanwhile slot machines would be only be allowed in casinos according to the bill.
An agreement at the end of last year ensured an urgent vote on the project that regulates casinos, but its analysis was delayed for this year. The proposal faces resistance from the evangelical caucus, which has even asked President Jair Bolsonaro to promote his veto of the measure, if it is approved by Congress.
