No-slot mayors: where are they in Italy?

Even in Italy, where unfortunately the gioco d’azzardo it is very widespread, there are municipal administrations and regions where the so-called mayors No slot machines, and governors are incentivizing businesses to forgo these activities. Despite a European record of one slot machine for every 143 residents, some municipalities are trying to ban these "money-eating machines," or regions like Tuscany are lowering the IRAP (regional business tax) for businesses willing to forgo gambling revenue.

NO SLOT MAYORS

Since 2013, several municipalities and their respective mayors have signed the "Mayors' Manifesto for Legality Against Gambling" promoted and carried forward by the School of Best Practices. One of the first documents to send a strong and clear message against gambling addiction from governments. Since then, gambling has decreased in several cities in Piedmont, Lombardy, Umbria, and Emilia-Romagna thanks to initiatives implemented by mayors, but there is still a long way to go. According to data reported in the 2022 Blue Book of the Customs and Monopolies Agency, Italians' gambling spending exceeded €20,3 billion (up 31,56% compared to 2021).

READ MORE: Gambling addiction: symptoms, causes, and treatment options

PAVIA

Satisfactory results against gambling have been achieved, for example, by the administration of the Municipality of Pavia, a city once considered the queen of gambling capitals. Here, in recent years, an important awareness and fight against gambling has been carried out. gambling addiction through more or less original initiatives. Thanks, in particular, to mayors Alessandro Cattaneo (until 2014), and Massimo Depaoli, in office until 2019. Depaoli is responsible for signing the ordinance that requires keep slot machines turned off for 16 hours a dayThe municipality also gave birth to the project "No-slot neighborhoods"to encourage operators to eliminate slot machines from their premises not through subsidies (a strategy that has not borne much fruit in the past), but rather through the organization of events aimed at spreading the culture of healthy gaming.

With the involvement of schools, parishes, and associations, it launched a campaign to "replace" gambling with decidedly more ethical pastimes, such as briscola championships, basketball games, dance and athletics exhibitions, and role-playing games. All of this took place within the venues that had decided to eliminate slot machines. Over the years, it also initiated a program of training and information on addictions and gioco d’azzardo aimed at teachers, parents, local administrators, social workers, local police and support administrators.

SARONNO

Lombardy is the Italian region with the highest gambling activity. Examples of the fight against gambling include the mayor of the city of Saronno, which has joined, like many other municipalities in the region, the project GAP 2.0 for the prevention and fight against gambling addiction. Among the initiatives implemented to this end were the production of several short commercials and two theatrical performances, which aimed to raise awareness of the risks associated with this activity and to offer food for thought, particularly regarding the suffering and devastation it causes not only to those addicted to gambling, but also to those around them. Because yes, the damage caused by gambling is enormous, and affects the most vulnerable, young people, and vulnerable couples and families.

SYRACUSE

Also the Sicilia, in particular SIRACUSA, thanks to Mayor Francesco Italia, who took office in 2018, has endorsed the aforementioned manifesto. Through Ordinance No. 63/2018, it has adopted a measure to combat gambling addiction in the city. What does it include? Limiting the hours of operation of gaming halls and the use of slot machines. A ban on the opening of legal gaming establishments or the installation of such machines within 500 meters of "sensitive locations" such as schools, places of worship, social centers, youth centers, etc. Fines for violating the ordinance range from a minimum of €100 to a maximum of €500.

IRAP REDUCTION IN TUSCANY

In Tuscany, a regional law was passed in 2014 which assigns a IRAP discount to all establishments that forgo gambling revenue and become gambling-free. The cut is 0,50 percent; those who install new gambling machines must pay an additional 0,3 percent IRAP tax.

HOW MANY SLOTS IN ITALY?

Until 2020 – as reported by L'Espresso – it was possible to know how many slot machines were installed in each municipality. Starting that year, the Monopolies no longer provide this type of information to research institutions. However, one thing is certain: in 2015, there were 420 slot machines in Italy. In subsequent years, attempts were made to reduce this number to 250.000, but the available data is insufficient to confirm whether the number has actually decreased.

Encouraging data, but limited to the Friuli Venezia Giulia region, comes from research conducted by the Department of Economics and Statistics at the University of Udine, which analyzed the evolution of slot machines between 2015 and 2022. This study revealed that the number of slot machines at the beginning of the study was 8.294. In 2022, the number was 4.695. However, an article published in La Stampa in May 2023 states that, although the number of machines nationwide has decreased by 1,4%, they have actually increased in Piedmont. This is supported by a study by the Local Health Authority (ASL), which found that the region has 51 machines per 10 inhabitants, compared to 46,6 three years earlier.

Well, but who controls slot machines in Italy? This task is entrusted to the aforementioned Customs and Monopolies AgencyA regulatory authority, as stated on the official website, for oversight and control, including sanctioning powers, in the field of public gaming, among others.

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