One hundred representatives of cities and communities attended a seminar organized by the Czech Chamber of Lottery Industries (CCLI) in cooperation with the Ministry of Finance of the Czech Republic and the Ministry of the Interior. Mostly discussed questions are about the concourse of the old and new legislation.
Adjustment of generally binding public notice in accordance with the new law. Concourse of two legislative regulations adjusting the rules for operating lottery games. These are the two main concerns of the accountable representatives of the public and community administrations.
“We were happy to organize lectures of the Ministry of Finance and the Interior to those representatives of the cities and communities, who will be responsible to deal with these particular issues. The response so far has been very positive. Personally I am convinced, that together we shall succeed in applying the new regulations without any bigger difficulties from the point of view of the regulator as well as public administration and last but not least the operators” says the president of the CCLI Stanislav Brunclik.
The most feared issue is the concourse of the old and new legislation. Mainly the property rights between the owner of the property, where lottery and other games are legally permitted, and the individual operators. Especially for cases such as these the CCLI promised maximum assistance and help. The CCLI could, for complicated cases, become a conciliation arbiter.
“It is to be understood that the implementation of the new legislation is most likely as stressful and difficult for the responsible public employees as for the operators. Without doubt we will try to assist to our best abilities the public sector administration, in helping to solve particular problems”, the president of CCLI pointed out.
New bylaws
Sooner or later cities and communities will be faced concerning the new legislation, with the obligation to revise standing publicly binding ordinances which regulate lottery and other gaming. As understood from the proclamation of Miroslav Veselý, chief official of department of supervision and control of public administration of the Ministry of the Interior, it is not necessary to change publicly binding decrees immediately after January 1. 2017. If they were implemented in compliance with the standing legislation, they shall be applicable henceforth.
Mr. Veselý stated that despite of this the new law introduces such fundamental changes in terms of operating lotteries and other gaming, that it will be at least necessary to consider the revisions of the generally binding municipal ordinance (GBO). Especially the bylaw of the so called “zero tolerance policy”, which is based on the argumentation of safeguarding public security, could in the light of the new legislation become obsolete. The reason for this is that the new law creates conditions, which eliminate dangers of public policy issues and principally the old decrees would regulate specific conditions, which could not become an issue under standing legislation.
“Alternatives such as these could arise and it is good to be aware of them, otherwise they would not be mentioned by the representatives of the Ministry of the Interior. On the other hand, “zero tolerance” is principally bad for CCLI. The way we read it is, that we understand that for most part the policy was introduced as a political tool and not as a force to eliminate public policy and public security. The worst part of it is, that it generates real dangers such as non-legitimate gambling dens, illegal gambling clubs etc. In my opinion this is exactly the battleground where joint interests of legitimate entrepreneurs, public administration and the majority of the general public meet in a joint effort”, adds Mr. Brunclík.
According to the chamber the only effective way to battle illegal gambling is an active cooperation of legal operators, state and public administration and repressive state organs. This is meant to suggest the following: a combination of supply of legal gambling which is a natural competition to illegal operators and a hard action policy of the police and organs of the Customs administration.
Stock-taking
The Czech Chamber of Lottery Industries offers an authentic and free of charge, successfully tested project of stock-taking. Field officers of the CCLI shall map the actual situation in the gaming industry of a designated area including non-legitimate business operations. The outcome of this will be transparent and legally “clean” regulation with a minimal amount of future complaints from operators or intervention from the Office for the Protection of Competition.