Chilean government will strenghten the norms for casino auditing

Within the discussion of the budget for the Casino Superintendence (SCJ) corresponding to 2011, the Under-Secretary of Economy, Rodrigo Álvarez, announced that the government will strenghten the norms with the aim to increment the mechanisms of control of casinos in the whole country.

The SCJ will continue deepening the role of regulation and control of the seven local casinos and the 15 new casinos existing in Calama, Antofagasta, Copiapó, San Antonio, Rinconada, Mostazal, Santa Cruz, Talca, Pinto, Talcahuano, Los Ángeles, Temuco, Valdivia, Osorno and Punta Arenas.

Alvarez also anticipated that 100 control visits are expected for the following year, and added that the authority will continue with the ellaboration and application of different norms to control the correct operation and administration of casinos, considering the contribution to the regional development.

With regards to SCJ peformance, he informed that the redesign of the support and development models, as well as the impantation of systems’ modules for the reception and processing of information of operating societies of casinos and customer management, which will be concluded during the first quarter 2011.

Another area they expect to implement in order to strenghen SCJ labour is the tender, which will be held in 2011, of the second part of the so-called Execution Stage “which will bring the Superintendence support systems to its key processes of control, gaming catalogues, record of homologation, ellaboration of studies and publications, sanctions, ellaboration of norms and others”, indicated the undersecretary of economy.

Álvarez also pointed that the budget 2011 for SCJ grew a 24.7% compared to 2010. The entity will continue implementing its plan to building works, through a series of visits for technical inspection in order to assure the regions the progress of the three casinso that are being developed in Ovalle, Castro and Coyhaique whose inauguration dates are contemplated by 2011.

The beginning ot those three new venues will mean an investment of us$ 76.3 million and the generation of 1,146 permanent direct employments and approximately 1,519 indirect jobs.

Alvarez commented that one of the achievements for 2010 in the regulatory field was that, due to the technological development existing in the games of chance sector and the growth that the casino industry has experimented, the SCJ dictated several instructions with the aim to rule gaming modalities that increase the casino collection and, as a consequence, the taxes that the industry collects.

The authority also informed that the Ministries of Economy and the Interior are working together in the ellaboration of a bill to treat the explosive growth of informal slots operating in commerce. The norm will be sent to the Congress at the beginning of 2011, concluded Álvarez.