On Tuesday, 21st June 2016, an updated draft of Bill 442/1991 (and related bills attached thereto) was approved by the Special Commission of the House of Representatives appointed to establish a new legal framework for gaming and betting in Brazil.
Since some of the most prominent supporters of Bill 186/2014 (which, conversely to Bill 442/91, was proposed by the Senate) have recently been involved in Operation “Car Wash” investigations, Bill 442/1991 could potentially steal the limelight from Bill 186/2014 and become the main piece of legislation relating to the legalization of gaming and betting in Brazil.
Many provisions of Bill 442/1991 are similar to those of Bill 186/2014 (such as the requirements for the establishment of a company in Brazil, fiscal good standing and absence of criminal records). Conversely, however, Bill 442/1991 explicitly banishes online betting (including sports betting in general) and contains what seems to be a closed list of permitted games which would encompass solely: (a) casino games; (b) bingo games; (c) state lotteries and (d) “Jogo do Bicho” (Brazil’s most famous and traditional unauthorized lottery based on numbers and animals). Curiously, such games are referred to in Bill 442/1991 as “games of fortune”, as opposed to “games of chance” provided by Bill 186/2014.
In addition, it seems that the members of the Special Commission, already foreseeing strong opposition by the Federal Public Prosecution Service (since such body was against Bill 186/2014 with a fear that the legalization of gaming and betting would foster money laundering activities), have included more rigorous control and audit mechanisms on the exploitation of gaming and betting activities.
An application for granting Bill 442/1991 the status of a “conclusive deliberation”, which means Bill 442/1991 would be forwarded directly to the Senate, without being voted by the House of Representative´s plenary, was also made on such date by Congressman Mário Negromonte.