The Japanese government is set to submit a consensus proposal for the nation’s new gaming regulatory body, the Casino Administration Committee, to the special session of the Diet within the next few months. It will also proceed with drafting the Fundamental Policy that will specify selection criteria for an IR location and push forward with building a suitable environment for IR development.
The Casino Administration Committee, which will be in charge of casino licensing and operator oversight, will be established as an affiliated agency of the Cabinet Office, consisting of four members and a chairperson. It will be responsible for the proper management of IRs, including receiving applications from operators for a casino license, financial auditing, elimination of antisocial forces and problem gambling countermeasures.
Other responsibilities will include sanctions such as revocation of licenses and business suspension for any violations of the law that an operator may commit. Both the chairman and the four commissioners require the consent of the national diet and the government will appoint them after the Diet’s approval. Members will serve five years and will be chosen from legal officials and experts familiar with overseas casino operations.
The government is emphasizing the careful selection of committee members through the consent of the Diet and the strong supervisory role it will assume. In doing so, it hopes to gain the understanding of citizens for casino development.
The government had initially intended to establish this committee on 1 July 2019.
The IR Implementation Act, promulgated in July of last year, requires the establishment of the Casino Administration Committee within 18 months from the date of promulgation, making the deadline 26 January 2020. However, the January regular session of the Diet is often convened late in the month, so it will be almost impossible to secure the deliberation time required and therefore difficult to postpone the establishment of this body any further beyond this Fall. Now that the Upper House has been elected, we can expect more government activity preparing for IR.
The government is also accelerating preparations for the Fundamental Policy. In the future, local governments such as Osaka Prefecture/City, Nagasaki Prefecture and Wakayama Prefecture, among others who wish to make an IR bid, will be able to open for public offerings and select operators based on the Fundamental Policy. The national government will authorize a maximum of three IR locations.
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