History of the Alcohol and Gaming Division
The Nova Scotia Gaming Control Commission was established on April 4, 1995, as a result of the introduction of the Gaming Control Act. At that time, the Nova Scotia Gaming Control Commission assumed the administrative, licensing, and inspection responsibilities of the Nova Scotia Liquor Licence Board, and the duties of the Nova Scotia Lottery Commission and the Nova Scotia Amusements Regulation Board. This merger was finalized in an Order In Council dated July 15, 1997 and resulted in an organizational name change to the Nova Scotia Alcohol and Gaming Authority. On April 14, 2000, the structure of the structure of gaming regulation in Nova Scotia was re-organized by disbanding the 7 member Board of the Alcohol and Gaming Authority. The adjudicative functions of the Alcohol and Gaming Authority were then assigned to the Utility and Review Board, and the licensing and compliance functions to the Minister of the Department of Labour and Workforce Development. For that purpose, the Department of Labour and Workforce Development created the Alcohol and Gaming Division.
The responsibilities of the Alcohol and Gaming Division include two broad mandates under the Gaming Control Act: The first is to licence and regulate gaming activity in Nova Scotia; the second is to study and report on certain aspects of gaming in Nova Scotia. These mandates necessarily include a strong consumer protection focus. The areas of study set forth in the Act include public interest and reaction to various forms of gaming; social, economic, health, justice, and environmental impacts of gaming; and the study of gaming laws and activities in other jurisdictions.
The Alcohol and Gaming Division is a separate and distinct entity from the Nova Scotia Gaming Corporation. Since both organizations were established under the same Act within weeks of each other, and originally shared similar names, there was understandably some confusion as to the difference between the two. Much of this confusion has been clarified with the name change to the Alcohol and Gaming Division. Moreover, the Gaming Control Act makes it quite clear that the functions of each organization are markedly different.
The Alcohol and Gaming Division is a licensing authority for gaming, and also regulates the gaming activity for which it has issued licences. The Alcohol and Gaming Division must be impartial in its study and reporting on all gaming activity, including that conducted by the Gaming Corporation.
The Alcohol and Gaming Division’s underlying mandate pursuant to the Gaming Control Act is to regulate all gaming activities in the Province so as to ensure these activities are conducted with honesty and integrity, while at the same time considering the social and economic interests of Nova Scotians. The three primary regulatory functions in this area are to ensure honesty and integrity in all areas of gaming, (casinos, bingo, ticket lottery, video lottery, etc.); compliance with the Gaming Control Act and its Regulations; and, to study and report annually on gaming in Nova Scotia.
The Alcohol and Gaming Division’s mandate pursuant to the Theatres and Amusements Act includes film classification, licensing, and regulation. Film classification duties involve the viewing and subsequent classification of film products for use in Nova Scotia and includes classification or a system of classification for video games in addition to or in place of classifications assigned by the Entertainment Software Rating Board. Licensing duties involve the licensing and regulation of theatres, places of amusement, and events where fees are charged to the public. Licences are issued for arcades, drive-in theatres, halls, itinerant shows, carnivals, circuses, outdoor festivals, parimutuel machines, race tracks, theatres, and video retail outlets.
The Alcohol and Gaming Division’s mandate pursuant to the Liquor Control Act is to issue licenses to eligible organizations for the sale and service of liquor, and ensure that these entities comply with the requirements of the Liquor Control Act and Liquor Licensing Regulations. The general public is likely most familiar with the liquor licensing processes of the Alcohol and Gaming Division through applications for Special Occasion Licenses. This type of license permits the sale and service of liquor at events such as weddings, festivals, fund raisers and community celebrations.
Since its inception, the Alcohol and Gaming Division determined that the gaming industry required analysis, understanding, and "daylight" in terms of a forthright accounting of the extent of the public's participation in gambling activities, and detailed and comprehensive disclosure as to the source and the distribution of gambling revenues. The Alcohol and Gaming Division provided such details in its first two reports, released on September 24, 1996, and December 22, 1997, respectively. The Alcohol and Gaming Division has maintained its commitment to ensuring the integrity of gaming and to developing and implementing an effective regulatory framework.
The Alcohol and Gaming Division, like most other conventional Gaming regulators in North America, devotes considerable time and resources answering the two traditional questions gaming regulators have always answered. These questions, simply put, are: who should be allowed to carry on gambling; and, are the games carried on in a fair and proper fashion?
The unique study provisions of Nova Scotia's Gaming Control Act essentially pose a new and even more challenging third question: Considering all of the social, health, justice, economic, and environmental factors, what is the impact of gaming?
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