Photo: Marcos Oliveira/Agência Senado
Photo: Marcos Oliveira/Agência Senado
The regulation of online betting by the National Congress, in addition to removing several websites that were not responsible for Brazilian legislation, was good for systematizing the operation of companies and generating resources for the Union, but the delay in enforcing the rules is causing the government to lose money, in addition to making it easier for people to continue looking for betting houses banned by the new law.
The person making this statement is Senator Angelo Coronel (PSD-BA), who was the rapporteur of Bill 3.626/2023, approved in the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies and which regulated fixed-odds sports betting in the "Bets".
In a conversation with Bahia Notícias, the senator recalled that the bill regulated a provisional measure from 2018 that was converted into Law 13.756/2018, and the new legislation passed last year allowed the federal government to collect revenue from games that were already in operation, thereby generating an increase in revenue that will also help meet fiscal targets.
Coronel said that he did not invent the game, he merely regulated what already existed and that did not generate dividends for the Brazilian state. However, for the senator, the delay in systematizing the operation of 'Bets' is helping to distort the regulations approved by the National Congress.
"There is some distortion in the betting sector due to the lack of speed in regulation. To give you an idea, it's been about a year since I was appointed rapporteur, and soon after we approved this bill, which was from the Executive Branch, and since then practically the entire year of 2024 has gone by without any regulation by the government."
"This slowness is what makes people use methods that are banned in the bill. But how? Without regulation, there would be no way to prevent, for example, the use of credit cards, which I think should be prohibited. In the regulation, the use of Bolsa Família cards should also be prohibited. In fact, it is necessary to take advantage of and monitor these Bolsa Família cards that are being gambled," said the senator.
After President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva spoke on the subject, the Minister of Social Development and Fight Against Hunger, Wellington Dias, said last week that the federal government is studying some way to prohibit the use of Bolsa Família cards to deposit money in online bets. According to the minister, this decision has already been made and now all that is missing is the technical implementation of the ban.
At the end of last month, the government was surprised by a study by the Central Bank on the online gambling and betting market, which identified that five million Bolsa Família beneficiaries had spent R$3 billion (US$ 526m) on 'Bets' in August alone. The study also showed that the total 'bets' made by Brazilians on betting in August had reached R$ 20.8 billion (US$ 3.5bn).
When asked by Bahia Notícias he maintained his position of defending the importance of regulating gambling in Brazil, even in light of figures that show a significant increase in people's debt, Angelo Coronel stressed that regulation was important not only to legalize the sector's operation, but to generate revenue that will be applied to sectors that are essential to the population.
"I believe that regulation was of great importance, especially for a country like Brazil, which has several social programs in need of resources. The taxes that gambling will generate will be applied to several areas, such as health, public safety, and education."
"Several segments will be oxygenated, especially now that we are seeing that the revenue projection that was made at the beginning was one, and in fact it will be much higher than what was previously predicted. In addition to the R$30 million (US$ 5.2bn) grant for each bet, we will have taxes charged on bets, and this alone will also generate immediate revenue, and we cannot fail to have this revenue in Brazil," stated Coronel.
According to the senator, the federal government, using the revenue from regulating the operation of 'bets', could consider relieving the burden on companies, which are the most penalized by the current excessive tax burden in the country.
"I want to put money into the Union, into the government. Regulating 'Bets' is better than increasing taxes on Brazilian companies. It is collecting from a segment that generates taxes and thus stopping increasing taxes on companies. Brazilian companies cannot handle such a high tax burden. So we have to take these segments that already exist all over the world, such as betting, and regulate them in order to, perhaps, even reduce the tax burden or at least maintain the one that is already there", he said.
Another point emphasized by Senator Angelo Coronel was the importance of the rules approved by Congress to systematize bettors' access to 'Bets'. Coronel highlighted that it will be possible to identify who makes the bets on companies that have registered with the government, and once again called for greater speed in regularizing the operation of the sector.
"Before the bill was approved by Congress, there were no rules in the sector. No one could tell if anyone who entered the sites to gamble was a child or if they were using a Bolsa Família card. People entered the sites, played, and if they won, they received money, but no one knew where the money came from or who the person was who was betting. And with the regulations that we approved, even with this slow regulation of companies, it will be possible to ban the irregular use of bets. I believe that gambling will become healthier," said Angelo Coronel.
Finally, when asked by Bahia Notícias whether the state will be able to provide support to people who are becoming addicted to online gambling, the senator from Bahia said he believes that the funds raised from 'Bets' will be able to finance public health policies aimed at helping citizens who are having difficulty giving up gambling.
"I think that the proceeds from gambling could also be directed to the health sector. It is very important that this is directed to this area of public health, to take part of these resources and apply them to actions aimed at curing people who suffer from gambling addiction. That is why I reaffirm that this regulation is very important, and I think that speeches aimed at giving up a source of income that is a reality all over the world are excessively hypocritical," concluded Senator Angelo Coronel.
Source: Bahia Notícias
