The Government of Rio Grande do Norte has sent a bill to the Legislative Assembly (ALRN) to create the State Lottery Fund. The expectation is that, with the new legislation, the State will collect around R$25 million per year from the lottery.
The figures are from the State Finance Department (Sefaz), which sent the PL to ALRN last Thursday (10). However, the project was only published in the State Official Gazette days later.
The Government requested urgency in processing the project and the expectation is that approval will occur in 2025.
The proposal is that the exploration of lottery services is a right of the State, carried out through concessions or accreditations. The proposal indicates that Sefaz will be responsible for organizing and coordinating the services.
The idea is to strengthen public policies with the lottery
Also according to the State Government, the idea is to strengthen public policies in the State with the collections. The proposal follows models adopted in states such as Mato Grosso do Sul and Santa Catarina.
The revenue projection also takes into account the scenarios of neighboring states that already operate the service. Jane Carmen Araújo, executive secretary of Revenue at Sefaz-RN, explained how the Fund’s revenue collection should work.
“The RN State Lottery Fund aims to ensure that revenues from exploration, whether direct or indirect, are directed towards investments in actions and services related to public safety, affordable housing, science, technology and innovation, social security and for the promotion, structuring and maintenance of the lottery’s own services”.
“These include campaigns to prevent and control gambling addiction, that is, to control pathological gambling disorders, as well as campaigns and actions to disseminate good responsible gaming practices and guarantee the integrity, fairness and publicity of bets and draws carried out within the State of Rio Grande do Norte”, he explained.
The secretary also said that the department has already participated in a meeting with the Prizes and Betting Secretariat, linked to the Ministry of Treasury, which is responsible for regulating the lottery modality called fixed-odds bets.
“In the bill that was sent, the provision for the possibility of direct or indirect exploration has as its objective the promotion of relevant social areas, through the collection of non-tax revenue, resulting from the exploration of lottery modalities in the State’s territory, provided for in Federal Law 13,756 of 2018 and 14,790 of 2023, and which will be duly regulated when the law is approved”, added the secretary.
Proposal provides for special credit
The proposal also provides for the opening of a special credit line in the amount of R$3 million for the installation of the State Lottery. In addition, it provides for the adoption of systems aimed at the integrity of the lottery market, with a focus on the security of physical and digital tickets, as well as on combating fraud and promoting responsible gaming.
According to the government, the games must follow lottery plans approved by the executive secretary of the State Revenue Service. Prize amounts not claimed within 90 days of the draws will be donated to the State Lottery Fund.
The State Executive’s proposal is based on decisions by the Federal Supreme Court (STF). In 2020, the STF recognized that the Union does not have exclusive rights to operate lottery services. As a result, states and the Federal District are authorized to regulate and operate such activities within their territories.
