Legislation
Brazil – Pressure mounts to change Brazilian gaming laws
By Phil - 5 October 2015
Senator Benedito de Lira has asked for the Senate’s approval for a law which would regulate gaming.
Speaking in a plenary session, the Senator asked for the approval of Senate Bill 186/2014, arguing that in times of crisis and due to lack of resources, the regulation of gambling in Brazil could significantly increase tax generated by the state. According to the Senator the so called “Animal Game” alone generates around R$12bn a year.
The lottery-type drawing, operated on a regional basis by criminals known as contraventores, has been illegal since 1946 in 25 of the 26 states with Paraiba being the only state where the game is legal and regulated. A special committee in the Brazilian Congress has already been charged this year with reviewing proposed legalisation which would legalise game.
Benedito argued that gambling was already a reality in Brazil. The animal game, for example, currently has 450,000 points of sale across the country and employs hundreds of thousands of people, he said. According to the senator, the regulation of gaming including the animal game, bingos, video-bingos and casinos, amongst others, would yield the government from around R$18bn to R$20bn a year in tax revenues.
“Other countries in South America, North America and Europe, have regulated gambling. Look at the example of Las Vegas, which was a desert and today is a city that receives more than 48 million tourists and not solely depends on gaming. The same thing could happen here,” he said.
Among the benefits of regulation, he said were the promotion of tourism, an increased investment in infrastructure, job creation and increased tax collection.
Benedito said he had submitted a proposal to President Dilma Rousseff and had carried out an informal consultation with members of both houses. The majority of respondents were in favour of the idea, he said. The law was initially put forward in July 2014 by Senator Ciro Nogueira and is under review in the Commission of Regional Development and Tourism. The bill would permit online and land based gaming and would reflect similar legislation in place in countries in Western Europe.
Senator Ciro Nogueira reinforced Senator Benedito’s arguments, noting that for every three reals, two reals are played illegally. The author of the proposal also said that the project may be included in the list of matters including in Brazil Agenda a wide sweeping set of proposals designed to stave off the current political crisis.
As reported last week Brazil could legalise gambling in order to raise money and help weather the recession. Shortfall in taxes generated by Brazil’s struggling economy has prompted the government of Dilma Rousseff to cut budgets and raise taxes. Rousseff and several cabinet ministers met with party leaders from the alliance recently to discuss the issue to see if the new proposals would have their approval, according to statements made later by a number of lawmakers to local media.
