Mexico wants to replace its 1947 gaming law
The law regulating gambling in Mexico dates back to 1947, and the government now has a proposal ready to replace it. Rosa Icela Rodríguez, head of the Ministry of Interior (Secretaría de Gobernación), reported that the internal review of a reform to the Federal Law on Games and Lotteries has concluded. This reform aims to curb money laundering and tax evasion within casinos and sportsbooks. The text will now go to the Security Cabinet before a potential presentation.
The announcement was accompanied by a rather stark account of how interactions with the industry unfold. During "La Mañanera del Pueblo," the official recounted meeting with casino and betting center operators and, first and foremost, asking them not to corrupt her ministry's staff. She warned that if this occurred, she would shut down their businesses and imprison any employees who accepted money.
In return, she offered something concrete: to regularize injunctions and other pending procedures that operators had with the agency. According to her assessment, the agreement was honored, and the relationship with the sector remained stable during her two years in office.
Rodríguez also drew a line regarding what falls under her ministry's purview and what does not. She admitted that the sector has problems but clarified that they are not within the administrative scope of the Ministry. She detailed that about 20 casinos were closed due to their links with money laundering schemes or tax fraud, specifying that these closures stemmed from criminal and fiscal investigations that the Ministry coordinated with the Attorney General's Office and the Financial Intelligence Unit, not from the regulatory function exercised by Gobernación.
For day-to-day operations, she asked business owners for two things: to pay their taxes and to respect their workers' labor rights. And for inspections, she implemented a reciprocal surveillance mechanism: she instructed operators to film the inspector upon arrival, and inspectors to do the same with whoever receives them, so that both parties have evidence of what transpires.
Tags: Rosa Icela Rodríguez, SEGOB, Federal Law on Games and Lotteries, Financial Intelligence Unit