Wakayama Prefectural Assembly rejects IR development plan bill

The Wakayama Prefectural Assembly voted down the bill that would have let the prefecture apply to the national government for approval of its integrated resort (IR) plan, at a plenary session on April 20, 2022. The vote was 18 in favor and 22 against¹. With the rejection, the prefecture can no longer submit its plan to the national government by the April 28 deadline, and the Wakayama IR plan returns to a blank slate¹.

Wakayama had been pursuing an IR on the artificial island of Wakayama Marina City in Wakayama City¹. The assembly opened an extraordinary session last week to deliberate the bill the prefecture submitted to apply its development plan to the national government¹.

At a special committee vote on April 19, members raised a series of objections, including that the funding plan was uncertain, and the bill was rejected in committee¹. The full assembly then took up the bill on April 20 and decided it by anonymous ballot, with 18 in favor and 22 against¹.

The bill's failure means Wakayama cannot file its application with the national government before the April 28 cutoff, and the prefecture's IR plan is back to square one¹.

What it means for players

Japan's casino resort framework is set out in national law, and any IR needs both a prefectural application and national approval before it can open. Wakayama's rejection removes one of the locations that had been moving through that process, so no casino at Wakayama Marina City is now in the pipeline on the schedule the prefecture had been working to¹. For residents, expats and visitors in Japan, the practical position on where and when an IR might open is unchanged by this vote alone: the sources do not report any new venue or date to replace Wakayama's bid. Existing rules on gambling in Japan are not affected by the assembly's decision.

What happens next

The April 28 deadline for submitting an IR plan to the national government now cannot be met by Wakayama¹. The sources do not report whether the prefecture intends to revive a bid, whether another location will take Wakayama's place, or what the national government will do with the remaining application process. Those points have not been reported.