In Santo Domingo, a public dispute has erupted over gambling regulation in the Dominican Republic’s horse racing sector, after the country’s National Horse Racing Commission (CNH) pushed back against accusations leveled by local sports betting associations. At the heart of the clash are conflicting claims over regulatory oversight, the number of operating betting outlets, and the transparency of the sector’s tax framework.
CNH President Francisco Pavonessa Grullón has struck back at the complaining groups, emphasizing that the commission’s all regulatory actions are rooted in existing national legislation governing horse racing activities. Grullón clarified that the commission’s core priorities are upholding legal compliance across the sector, enforcing full tax transparency, and safeguarding the legitimate acquired rights of licensed industry stakeholders. He also alleged that many of the operators behind the recent complaints are themselves violating national rules, by offering unlicensed virtual horse racing games without the mandatory approval from the CNH.
One key claim from the sports betting associations that the CNH has formally disputed is the assertion that virtual horse betting locations have spread in an unregulated, uncontrolled manner across the country. The betting groups have claimed that the total number of active betting outlets ranges between 70,000 and 150,000, a figure the commission has flatly rejected. According to official CNH data, the agency has issued just 29,100 total licenses throughout its history, drawn from a pool of approximately 60,000 received applications. Commission officials added that most licensed virtual horse racing operations are hosted within already legally operating lottery and sports betting establishments, a deliberate policy design intended to curtail the spread of unregulated, illegal gambling.
The CNH has also stepped forward to defend its existing tax model for virtual horse racing, arguing that the framework is far more transparent than many other gambling revenue systems in the Dominican Republic. The commission noted that tax obligations are calculated based on real-time gross sales data, eliminating room for underreporting and increasing accountability for all licensed operators.
In closing, the agency reaffirmed its public support for the pending comprehensive gambling bill currently under consideration by the Dominican Congress. Commission leaders stated that the new legislation would strengthen national regulatory oversight of the entire gambling sector, step up efforts to eliminate illegal unlicensed operations, and create clearer, more consistent legal certainty for all legitimate industry participants.