The Legislative Assembly of Maranhão approved, in a plenary session this Thursday, 17, the Bill 359/2020, authored by the Executive Branch, which resumes the public service of state lottery. Now, the agenda goes to the sanction of Governor Flávio Dino (PCdoB).
The state lottery will be explored by the Executive, through Maranhão Parcerias S / A (MAPA), a mixed economy company linked to the State Secretariat of Government (SEGOV), with the intention of generating resources to fund charitable projects linked to the education area .
The project establishes that the product will be used in accordance with the Executive Decree, part of which is aimed at social security, taking into account, in each lottery category, at least, an amount granted by the Union for the same purpose; the financing of educational projects; award payment; payment of income tax related to the premium and maintenance costs of the operating agent of the state lottery.
It also defines that the amounts of prizes that have not been claimed by the winners within the deadline, will be allocated to the Maranhense Fund to Combat Poverty.
History of the state lottery in Maranhão
The Maranhão State Lottery emerged in 1956, through Law 1.445. Since then, the service has been marked by suspensions and resumes. With Law 2,327, of November 17, 1963, the State Lottery of Maranhão resumed its activities.
On November 12, 1985, Law 4,681 again forced the cancellation of the works. The return occurred five years later, with Law 5.033. In 1991, the State Lottery of Maranhão was definitively extinguished, due to Law 5,202, of October 7, 1991.
After that, the provision of the service was only reestablished in 2002, having been instituted by Art. 14 of Law 7.734 and regulated by Decree 18.899, of August 13, 2002.
But, the activity lasted only five years. Understanding that state measures disrespected the Union’s private competence, the Supreme Federal Court (STF) determined the unconstitutionality of Article 14 of Law 7.734, ending any chance for Maranhão to explore the lottery modality in 2007.
The situation has recently changed due to a review by the STF itself. According to the Supreme Court, the operation of lottery services is not exclusive to the Union and the states can reestablish their lotteries. Therefore, the Legislative Assembly chose to reinstate this type of public service in the state.
