Clubs in Canberra will soon have to chip in thousands of dollars per month to help other venues transition away from gaming.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
ACT Gaming Minister Gordon Ramsay tabled an exposure draft in the Legislative Assembly on Thursday of legislation to create a 'diversification and sustainability support' fund for the clubs sector.
The fund was a recommendation of the Neville Stevens review on how to reduce the Canberra clubs industry's reliance on poker machine revenue.
Mr Ramsay said clubs will have to contribute $20 per month for the first 99 poker machine licences they hold, rising to $30 per month for each authorisation over this.
It will mean a club like the Tradies, with 309 licences, will have to put $8280 per month into the fund.
A clubs group, like Southern Cross, would be required to contribute around $13,353 a month for the 554 licences they hold.
Mr Ramsay expected the fund to generate about $1 million from clubs over 2019-20. That would be matched dollar-for-dollar by the government, taking the total fund to $2 million.
Clubs would then be able to apply for grants from the fund, to be used for training for club directors and staff, but also strategic planning and development studies.
Small-to-medium clubs with a gross gaming venue of less than $4 million would be prioritised for grants for the first three years of the fund's existence.
A new advisory board will also be created to provide advice to the minister about the administration of the fund.
It is unclear whether either of the clubs industry peak bodies will get a seat on the board.
A spokesman said the board will be comprised of people who could make recommendations about business development and training, not about clubs policy generally.
The bill would also require about three-quarters of clubs' minimum mandatory community contributions to be made out as cash.
Clubs are required to pay at least 8 per cent of their net gaming machine revenue as community contributions (excluding the extra 0.8 per cent on top which is split between a separate harm minimisation fund and the new Chief Ministers Charitable Fund).
But a cap of 2 per cent on in-kind contributions will be introduced, after clubs were criticised for claiming room hire under the scheme.
However clubs will be able to claim in-kind contributions beyond this cap if they have an agreement in place to do so for five years or more.
