Dominican Republic Introduces Bill to Modernize Gambling Regulations
A new bill has been introduced in the Senate of the Dominican Republic that seeks to create a modern system of regulation for the country’s gambling sector. The proposal includes a range of gaming facilities like lottery agencies, sports betting shops, bingo halls, and electronic lottery sales points.
The goal of the initiative is to establish more clearly the different forms of gambling and to introduce new operational requirements for each type of gambling. In addition, legislators hope to make the industry more orderly by creating new regulations on where casinos can be located.
Authorized, the bill would supersede or strengthen current laws, which establish location criteria that would uniform gambling expansion throughout the country.
Minimum Distance Requirements for Gambling Establishments
One of the key aspects of the bill is the setting of minimum distances between gambling establishments and sensitive areas like schools, hospitals, churches, child care facilities and government buildings. Distances vary depending on the type of gambling operation.
Lottery agencies would be banned from setting up within 200 linear meters of public schools, private schools, disability support facilities, hospitals, clinics, healthcare centres, the branches of government’s main headquarters and officially recognised churches under Article 60. The proposal also continues the current regulation outlined in Decree 1167-01 that lottery affiliates be spaced 200 metres apart.
Article 67 introduces much more stringent regulations for sports betting establishments, which must be a minimum of 500 linear meters away from schools, healthcare facilities, churches, disability support centers, and the main government buildings. The proposal is also to keep sports betting venues at least 500 meters apart.
Separate Rules for Bingo Halls and Electronic Lottery Sales
The bill also sets certain standards for where bingo games can be operated. Article 80 would require that no traditional or electronic bingo would be allowed within 100 meters of sports clubs, cultural centers, public hospitals and clinics, public schools, private schools, or churches.
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Also, minimum distances of 300m between registered bingo halls would be enforced, which would add additional spacing between the bingo halls in the sector.
The proposal additionally incorporates electronic lottery sales points. These outlets must be at least 200 linear meters away from public schools, private schools, child care centers, churches, disability support centers, hospitals, clinics, and other healthcare facilities (Article 98).
Proposal Aims to Improve Industry Organization
The bill is designed to provide Dominican legislators with more avenues for regulating the gambling industry by establishing clearer rules for the operation of games and where they can be played based on their respective categories.
The bill proposes to differentiate the regulatory requirements for all different types of lottery sales point providers (sportsbooks, bingo halls, and electronic lottery sales points), to create a more regulated structure for the development of the lottery market, and to deal with issues of proximity of gambling facilities to public institutions and public spaces.
The plan now goes to the Dominican Senate, where members will debate the plan before deciding to approve it for implementation.
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Source: SBC Noticias
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