Alberto Neto, Brazilian lawmaker who represents Amazonas in the House of Deputies, has proposed a bill that would bring casinos to Manaus, Amazonas, a city of more than 2 million people in the Brazilian Amazon. Licenses would be granted for 10 years and could be renewed. Neto says that casinos in the state could be used as part of an experimental phase to assess the viability of establishments before they are rolled out on a wider scale.
According to the bill, the locations of casinos must take into account factors such as the “lack of alternatives for their economic development” and their “tourist heritage.”
Neto said Amazonas could lead the way for other states if casinos are successful there. “Even though there was not the necessary consensus for legalization in the national territory of casinos, I believe that the State of Amazonas could be a pioneer in practice and, therefore, a true laboratory for assessing whether the country is in fact ready to receive casinos”, he said in his justification for the bill.
In January, Deputy Pablo Oliva, vice president of the Mixed Parliamentary Front for the Approval of the Regulatory Framework for Games, said casinos in would serve as a tourist attraction and generate growth.
“It is a successful experience in different parts of the world. It is the type of activity that moves the economy on several fronts. “They ‘link’ with hotels and take the whole tourist initiative, through entertainment, structures for shows and events. This moves the economy in fields that are more different than we can imagine,” he said
