THE Rota Casino Gaming Commission needs a minimum of $740,000 for the commissioners’ salaries, training and office needs, Rota Mayor Efraim Atalig said.
He said a Korean gaming company, IH Corporation, wants to open a casino on Rota on Dec. 24, 2021.
But “without startup fund, how can the commission set up their office, hire needed staff, be trained in their regulatory functions and other administrative requirements as a regulatory entity?” Atalig asked in his letter to the co-chairs of the Rota legislative delegation, Rep. Donald Manglona and Sen. Teresita Santos.
Atalig also noted that a five-year casino license is expiring next year, but the license holder has yet to build a casino.
“The challenge facing the commission right now is not having funding to hire critical staff and to train them in the regulatory requirements of casino operations. To prepare the commission as a functioning entity, they need a minimum funding of $740,000 to cover salaries, training and office needs,” Atalig told the delegation co-chairs.
The mayor said with assistance from the municipality and financial support from the central government, “the commission can…move forward in allowing casino operation on Rota.”
He added, “The revitalization of the Rota economy rests in part on an entity like the Rota Casino Gaming Commission operating on a positive image of competency in regulating casino operations.”
One of the measures being considered by the delegation is Senate Local Bill 22-6, which would allow Rota casino commissioners to receive $60,000 per year only when there is an active casino operation on island.
Saying that the Rota municipal government spends $300,000 each year on the commissioners’ salaries even when there is no casino on the island, Rep. Donald Manglona said the commissioners’ compensation “is a huge burden on the municipality’s obligations.”
