Brazil: Senate President says bill to regulate casinos, bingos, gambling to be voted on starting August

Senate President Rodrigo Pacheco (PSD-MG) said on Tuesday that the bill to regulate casinos, bingos, and gambling will be voted on after the parliamentary recess, which begins on July 18 and ends on July 31.

"There is no need to rush. We can vote on it perfectly well after the recess. But it will be voted on, because, having passed through the Chamber, through the CCJ [Constitution, Justice, and Citizenship Commission] of the Senate, if there is a predisposition of the Executive, we have to submit it to a vote," Pacheco said.

As detailed by Valor Econômico, the senator also indicated that the bill should be sent directly to the full House for consideration and vote, ignoring the requests of the evangelical caucus for it to be discussed in other House committees - which would delay its probable approval.

This information contradicts what was published a few days ago by Rádio Senado, which stated that bill 2.234/22 would continue to be debated in another committee.

"This matter has reached the committee stage, now we have to find a date for it to go to the full Senate. There has been enough debate, those in favor are in favor, and those against are against. Everyone has their arguments. It is very important that it is put to a vote," stated the president of the Senate.

Smoking areas and health

Senators linked to the health sector, already anticipating the approval of bill 2.234/22, want to eliminate from the initiative the provision for the creation of smoking areas, as reported by the media G1.

The text says that "the establishments authorized to operate casino and bingo games must have areas reserved for smokers." In addition to considering that the issue is not related to the original topic (authorization to operate casinos, among others), lawmakers believe that the measure goes against the current legislation - since 2011, a law prohibits the creation of closed areas reserved for smokers, with the regulation finalized in 2014.

The concerns about the health of the population are considered serious. Senator Humberto Costa (PT-PE), a physician and president of the Social Affairs Commission (CAS) of the Senate, stated that the text is a "mistake" and "madness".

"Brazil has developed a successful strategy to combat smoking and protect people who come into contact with smoke. The end of smoking rooms was an important step forward," Costa said. 

The parliamentarian believes that smoking rooms concentrate the exposure of smokers to harmful components, while not offering sufficient protection to non-smokers. For this reason, he indicated that he would present an amendment to eliminate the measure from the bill and, if it is not approved, he would ask President Lula to veto the provision.