- The new law proposes the establishment of a National Gaming Commission (NGC).
- The NGC would take responsibility for enforcement, inspection, verification and issuing licenses.
- Operators must hold a license for a land based gaming facility.
- All servers are to be based in authorized locations inside the country.
- No form of gambling is specifically forbidden.
- Stiff penalties are set out for operators and players who breach the law.
A draft Federal Gaming Law has been proposed by Senator Maria Espinoza, a member of the ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI). The law would repeal the 1947 Federal Law of Games and Raffles which currently governs gambling.
Rationale
Apart from the old law being inappropriate for modern gambling, the motivation behind the proposed law is: “… to put in order a highly questionable activity … because of tragedies that have occurred as the result of its poor regulation and also because of the alleged illegality of a large percentage of the establishments engaged in betting.”
Additional motives quoted in the preamble to the law include the protection of the young and vulnerable; the protection of players and to combat money laundering.
A New National Gaming Commission
The new law proposes the establishment of a National Gaming Commission (NGC) within 180 days of the enactment of the law. The NGC would take responsibility for enforcement, inspection, verification and issuing licenses.
The NGC would also be required to maintain a central register of players not allowed to gamble because they have voluntarily self-excluded themselves; or been declared excluded on medical advice—which can be requested by a family member— or who are excluded by a judicial decision.
Players with complaints would be able to take them to the NGC which must conform to a strict timetable in investigating the claims. Players and operators with complaints would alternatively be able to opt for a formal arbitration mechanism to be established by the NGC.
Draconian Licensee Requirements
The new law would seriously impact operators offering online gaming to Mexican residents as it restricts licenses to operators who hold or are granted a license for a land-based gaming facility.
