Barcelar: “From now on the project can be voted on in plenary at any time”
Brazil’s House of Representatives approved the bill to legalize casino and bingo games in Brazil (PL 442/91) as well as the popular illegal lottery Jogo do bicho, via an urgent parliamentary session. Debated under the tutelage of The Speaker of the Chamber, Arthur Lira, the application was approved by 293 votes in favour, 138 against and 11 abstentions.
Now the text will be debated by the plenary, taking into account that the PL can go to the plenary vote at any time, without having to go through committees. The news represents the biggest step in Brazil towards the legalization of gambling and the installation of casinos in the country.
According to Lira, the representatives must, now, begin debating the merits of the bill, taking into account that the vote on the full text is set for February 2022. According to House rules procedure and depending on the approval of the urgent request, the bill will not need to go through the committee stage, although PL 442/91) has already been approved by a special committee created for this purpose.
The updated text to replace PL 442/91, which dates from 1991, was prepared by Congressman Felipe Carreras and debated in consensus with the Working Group (GT) created for this purpose by Arthur Lira in September 2021, proposing the legalization of all forms of gambling in casinos integrated in resorts, urban casinos, online sports betting, bingo and online horse racing betting.
The evangelical groups in Brazil’s Representatives House linked to the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God, were the only parties that voted against the bill to approve legislation for the practice of gambling in bingos, casinos, slot machines and Jogo bo bicho, and online gambling in the country.
The new PL 442/91 text bill proposes the creation of Sistema Nacional do Jogo –SINAJ (National Gambling System), composed of a federal regulatory and supervisory body, operating entities, betting agents, horse racing plus accounting auditing firms.
According to Rep. Barcelar, president of the GT, all issues of the bill were discussed long before the preparation of the final text, in order to satisfy the concerns of opponents regarding money laundering and the risks of association with criminal activities, as well as protection of harm to the public.
On the matter of responsible gambling, the document proposes the creation of a “National Policy for the Protection of Gamblers and Bettors”, as well as the implementation of the National Registry of Gamblers and Bettors, and specific criteria to prevent money laundering.
Among the money laundering criteria, the bill exacts that no operation can be carried out using cash in order to track all financial transactions by the operator and also the player. According to the proposal, a gaming and betting inspection fee (TAFIJA – Brazilian acronym) must be also instituted, with amounts defined according to the modality to be exploited, which must be paid quarterly. Also set out in the bill is the application of income tax on gambling gross revenue (GGR), as well as a 20% tax winnings by the bettor.
The document also establishes gambling tax rate as Cide-Jogos Contribuição de Intervenção no Domínio Econômico, or Contribution through Intervention in the Economic Field, of 25% for online gambling and of 20% for land-based gambling, which will be distributed between the Federal Union, the States and the Municipalities.
Once in plenary, the text can receive modifications in the form of amendments, and then must be forwarded to the Senate. Rep. Barcelar said that the vote in the House of Representatives was a victory for the GT and crowns the success the work done in such a short time, adding: “We met with all the government agencies that are responsible for supervision, regularization and other federal entities. The work on PL 442/91 by the WG was very exhaustive and we’ve had excellent reports”, finally indicating, “from now on the bill can be voted on in the Plenary, at any time”.
