Casino regulation – Bookielink

October 28, 2024

Jordan Maynard officially named Massachusetts gaming chair

On Monday (28 October) interim Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MGC) chair Jordan Maynard was appointed to a permanent role by the state's governor.

Maynard has been serving as the interim chair since former MGC chief Cathy Judd-Stein retired from public service in March. Governor Maura Healy also appointed former Melrose mayor Paul Brodeur as the agency’s fifth commissioner, according to a press release. The MGC had been down a commissioner since Judd-Stein’s retirement.

“He has proven to be a consensus builder who has a deep understanding of the agency and strives to do what’s best for the people of Massachusetts,” Healy said via press release.

Maynard was first appointed to the MGC in August 2022 and was part of the MGC when it developed rules and launched digital and in-person sports betting in 2023. The state’s general assembly legalised wagering in August 2022.

“I wish to congratulate Jordan Maynard upon his designation by Governor Healey as chair of the Massachusetts ..

October 9, 2024

G2E: Lobbyists predict Texas’ odds of 2025 gaming expansion now “greater than 50%”

Numerous years of political progress in Texas have made it so that the chances of passing gaming legislation in the 2025 session are better than ever, according to a panel of lobbyists on Tuesday (8 October) at Las Vegas' Global Gaming Expo (G2E).
Tuesday’s discussion drew a packed house to hear about the latest progress in the Lone Star State. David Rittvo, principal at Tailored Hospitality Advisors, moderated the discussion alongside three heads of governmental relations: Andy Abboud of Las Vegas Sands (LVS), Rick Limardo of MGM Resorts and Caesar Fernandez of FanDuel.

Abboud was the most bullish of the group, proclaiming several times that Texas gaming expansion is “inevitable”. Even if 2025 isn’t the year, he said, it will still be “another session of great progress”. When asked about the probability of passage next year, he asserted that it is now “greater than 50%”.

The path to legalisation is not easy – it requires a constitutional amendment, enabling legislation and pa..

June 24, 2024

Christopher Hebert appointed new Louisiana gaming chief

On Monday (24 June) Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry appointed Christopher Hebert as the state's new gaming chief. Former head regulator Ronnie Johns announced his retirement earlier this year and 30 June will be his last day.

Hebert was a director handling gaming in the attorney-general’s office. In that role, he worked closely with Johns, who retires as one of the most influential figures in Louisiana gaming. Herbert is the first black man to be named chairman of the Louisiana Gaming Control Board (LGCB), according to a press release from Landry’s office.

“Proper regulation of the gaming industry is crucial at a time in which gaming revenue continues to be a substantial part of our state’s economy,” Herbert said via press release. “I am both humbled and honored that Governor Landry has tapped me as the first African-American chairman of the Louisiana Gaming Control board and I vow to continue the hard work of previous chairmen in ensuring that gaming is free from criminal and c..

April 25, 2024

Time running short for Alabama gambling expansion

Alabama lawmakers told the media earlier this week that a conference committee brokering a deal for an expansion of gambling would meet on Wednesday (24 April) at 2pm local time. But as early as Wednesday morning, the meeting had fallen off the legislative calendar for the day.

A call to the Alabama house of representatives confirmed that the meeting was off for Wednesday (24 April) with no reschedule date. The legislature is now scheduled to close on 5 May. This will leave lawmakers a little more than a week to reach a deal for an Alabama gambling expansion. It will then require approval from the house and senate.

If approved, the decision to approve any gambling expansion would go to the voters. The house version of the bill would put the issue on the November ballot. The senate version would create a special election in September.

Historically with gambling, precious few bills that don’t have consensus relatively early in a session make it to a governor’s desk. Just this year, ..

February 27, 2024

Netherlands regulator KSA presents 2024 supervisory agenda

The Kansspelautoriteit (KSA), the gambling regulator in the Netherlands, has presented its supervisory agenda for 2024, citing four areas of focus.

Looking to achieve its mission of “safe gaming”, the KSA says it will increase its protection of vulnerable players in the Netherlands by looking to prevent addiction. The country took measures to do this in 2023, including the introduction of a ban on most forms of advertising.

The KSA is also looking to combat illegal online offerings, aiming for at least 90% of players to gamble with legal providers in the Netherlands. In a December article for iGB, Yield Sec chief executive Ismail Vali noted how the KSA’s current approach appeared to lack clear success in actual enforcement terms.

The KSA is vowing to further support partners, including the police and tax authorities, on investigations in the physical domain. The regulator hopes this will lead to less “undermining” between different organisations.

The KSA’s final area of emphasis is..

February 26, 2024

Affordability checks: Everything you need to know

With parliament to debate the introduction of affordability checks today (26 February), here’s everything you need to know about the proposals so far.

The long-awaited release of the Gambling Act white paper in April was the most transformative review of UK gambling in 18 years. It marked a key landmark in how the market will be regulated in the future – with affordability checks a key part of that discussion.

The government has already introduced some measures, such as the establishment of stake limits for online slots. However, other resolutions are also being worked upon as the UK government and the Gambling Commission (GC) looks to ease concerns over gambling harms in the country.

The strongest industry response to these proposals has been towards the potential implementation of affordability checks. They have met fierce opposition from operators and trade bodies.

With parliament set to debate financial checks this week, let’s take a look at how we got here.

White paper’s rele..

February 26, 2024

Sturgis’ review of Gambling Commission’s survey stoking the fire

The Gambling Commission (GC) recently lauded its Gambling Survey for Great Britain (GSGB), after it was endorsed by Professor Patrick Sturgis in an independent review. However, that backing is far from comprehensive, even from Sturgis himself.

Sturgis, a professor at the London School of Economics, did label the study “exemplary in all respects”. However, as has been the case in the past with the GC, its tendency to produce unreliable statistics was a noticeable theme for Sturgis, who cast doubt over the accuracy of the GSGB, which is due to be published this summer.

Sturgis said: “Until there is a better understanding of the errors affecting the new survey’s estimates of the prevalence of gambling and gambling harm, policymakers must treat them with due caution, being mindful to the fact there is a non-negligible risk that they substantially overstate the true level of gambling and gambling harm in the population.”

Hardly the glowing endorsement the GC has made out, Sturgis’ concer..

February 16, 2024

Alabama gambling bills passed by the house

Alabama voters are a step closer to deciding whether sports betting will be legalised in the state after a bill was passed by lawmakers.

The Alabama house passed two bills on Thursday which envisage the expansion of commercial gambling in the state.

Bills HB151 and HB152, both sponsored by Representative Chris Blackshear, must still be passed by the state’s upper house. The former, as a constitutional amendment, also requires confirmation by the public and would be added to the ballot in November.

Governor Kay Ivey, who would then have to approve both bills, said in a statement on Thursday that the bills “in their current form” have her support.

“The proposal passed by the house will clean up and crack down on the rampant illegal gambling and will give Alabamians the opportunity to have their say on regulated, limited forms of gaming,” Ivey said.

What the gambling bills include

On Thursday, HB151 was passed 70-32 by the House, with HB152 passed 67-31. The House Economic Developme..

January 22, 2024

ATG CEO Skarplöth calls for differentiated tax following 4% rise proposal

Hasse Lord Skarplöth, the chief executive of Aktiebolaget Trav och Galopp (ATG), has called for differentiated tax in response to the government announcing proposals to increase gambling tax by 4%.

In September, Sweden’s government (Regeringen) outlined plans to hike the gambling tax rate in the country from 18% to 22% of gross gaming revenue (GGR). If approved, the tax rise will come into effect in Sweden from 1 July 2024.

While Regeringen believes the move could bring in an additional SEK540.0m (£39.3m/€45.5m/$48.4m) in tax revenue each year, the proposals met with strong opposition from the industry, including the ATG.

In a blog, Skarplöth labelled Regeringen’s plans a “shock”, and called for taxes on horse and other sports betting to remain the same, while increasing those on igaming. Skarplöth cited examples of other European countries with differentiated gambling taxes as reasons for the Regeringen to rethink its proposals.

Skarplöth said: “It came as a shock, the proposal fo..

January 4, 2024

GambleAware CEO “welcomes” statutory UK industry levy

GambleAware’s chief executive Zoe Osmond “welcomes” the establishment of a statutory industry levy, believing it will help to fund gambling harms research.

Proposed as one of a host of measures in the Gambling Act white paper, the new levy would be set as a 1% fee on gross gambling yield for online gambling operators. Traditional betting shops and casinos will pay a proposed fee of around 0.4%.

The government says the levy would raise an estimated £100m (€115.5m/$121.7m) per year.

The operators would pay the levy to the Gambling Commission. The hope is this will ensure all licensed operators in the UK pay their fair share. The current voluntary levy system allows operators to pay a chosen sum.

With the consultation on the statutory levy ending in mid-December, Osmond has hailed its introduction, saying: “GambleAware welcomes the introduction of a statutory industry levy to fund gambling harms research, prevention and treatment (RPT).

“This is something we have long called for and..

January 3, 2024

Episode 25: Predictions for gaming regulation in 2024

The World Series of Politics is back from its festive break with the lowdown on what sort of regulatory progress the gaming industry can expect in 2024.

Happy new year listeners! Brendan Bussmann and Brandt Iden are back to discuss a Festivus miracle in Brazil, as well as setting out their predictions for US sports betting growth and whether 2024 will finally be the breakthrough year for US igaming.

brazil has the potential to be huge, but integrated resorts are not part of the mix

We come back after Brazil sports betting and igaming finally makes it over the finish line, giving the industry an early Christmas present. The market has potential to be huge, Brendan Bussmann says, especially after the 18% tax rate was cut to 12% of GGR.

There’s one thing missing, he adds. Integrated resorts are not part of the mix. This could bring billions in revenue into the local economy and, after the sports betting saga, we know Brazil isn’t one for rapid progress.

Regulatory predictions for 20..

December 22, 2023

Brazil’s chamber of deputies gives final approval to regulate gambling – igaming included

Brazil's chamber of deputies voted yesterday (21 December) to approve Bill 3,626/2023, which will regulate sports betting. Igaming has also been added back into the bill after removal by the senate.

Brazil’s chamber of deputies has now voted to approve online gambling, giving the final green light for the market to be regulated in 2024.

Yesterday evening’s vote on 21 December follows the senate plenary approving Bill 3,626/2023 on Tuesday 12 December last week.

Now that the Bill has been approved by the chamber of deputies, it will be passed onto the office of the president, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, for final approval.

Brazil’s gambling regulation: the final process

While the bill for Brazil’s online gambling regulation was previously approved by the chamber of deputies in September, the chamber was required to vote again to agree on the changes made to the bill by the senate last week.

Bill 3,626/23 was APPROVED BY THE SENATE PLENARY LAST WEEK

Senator Angelo Corone..

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Tag: Casino regulation