130th Ohio General Assembly
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H. B. No. 49  As Introduced
As Introduced

127th General Assembly
Regular Session
2007-2008
H. B. No. 49


Representative Gibbs 

Cosponsors: Representatives Seitz, Collier, Latta, Stewart, J., Garrison, Combs, Adams 



A BILL
To amend sections 109.32, 2915.01, 2915.02, 2915.07, 2915.081, 2915.09, and 2915.091 and to enact section 2915.083 of the Revised Code to allow a charitable organization to obtain a short-term license to conduct bingo, instant bingo at a bingo session, or instant bingo other than at a bingo session.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:
Section 1. That sections 109.32, 2915.01, 2915.02, 2915.07, 2915.081, 2915.09, and 2915.091 be amended and section 2915.083 of the Revised Code be enacted to read as follows:
Sec. 109.32.  All annual filing fees obtained by the attorney general pursuant to section 109.31 of the Revised Code, all receipts obtained from the sale of the charitable foundations directory, all registration fees received by the attorney general, bond forfeitures, awards of costs and attorney's fees, and civil penalties assessed under Chapter 1716. of the Revised Code, and all license fees received by the attorney general under section 2915.08, 2915.081, or 2915.082, or 2915.083 of the Revised Code shall be paid into the state treasury to the credit of the charitable law fund. The charitable law fund shall be used insofar as its moneys are available for the expenses of the charitable law section of the office of the attorney general, except that all annual license fees that are received by the attorney general under section 2915.08, 2915.081, or 2915.082, or 2915.083 of the Revised Code and that are credited to the fund shall be used by the attorney general, or any law enforcement agency in cooperation with the attorney general, for the purposes specified in division (H) of section 2915.10 of the Revised Code and to administer and enforce Chapter 2915. of the Revised Code. The expenses of the charitable law section in excess of moneys available in the charitable law fund shall be paid out of regular appropriations to the office of the attorney general.
Sec. 2915.01.  As used in this chapter:
(A) "Bookmaking" means the business of receiving or paying off bets.
(B) "Bet" means the hazarding of anything of value upon the result of an event, undertaking, or contingency, but does not include a bona fide business risk.
(C) "Scheme of chance" means a slot machine, lottery, numbers game, pool conducted for profit, or other scheme in which a participant gives a valuable consideration for a chance to win a prize, but does not include bingo, a skill-based amusement machine, or a pool not conducted for profit.
(D) "Game of chance" means poker, craps, roulette, or other game in which a player gives anything of value in the hope of gain, the outcome of which is determined largely by chance, but does not include bingo.
(E) "Game of chance conducted for profit" means any game of chance designed to produce income for the person who conducts or operates the game of chance, but does not include bingo.
(F) "Gambling device" means any of the following:
(1) A book, totalizer, or other equipment for recording bets;
(2) A ticket, token, or other device representing a chance, share, or interest in a scheme of chance or evidencing a bet;
(3) A deck of cards, dice, gaming table, roulette wheel, slot machine, or other apparatus designed for use in connection with a game of chance;
(4) Any equipment, device, apparatus, or paraphernalia specially designed for gambling purposes;
(5) Bingo supplies sold or otherwise provided, or used, in violation of this chapter.
(G) "Gambling offense" means any of the following:
(1) A violation of section 2915.02, 2915.03, 2915.04, 2915.05, 2915.07, 2915.08, 2915.081, 2915.082, 2915.09, 2915.091, 2915.092, 2915.10, or 2915.11 of the Revised Code;
(2) A violation of an existing or former municipal ordinance or law of this or any other state or the United States substantially equivalent to any section listed in division (G)(1) of this section or a violation of section 2915.06 of the Revised Code as it existed prior to July 1, 1996;
(3) An offense under an existing or former municipal ordinance or law of this or any other state or the United States, of which gambling is an element;
(4) A conspiracy or attempt to commit, or complicity in committing, any offense under division (G)(1), (2), or (3) of this section.
(H) Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, "charitable organization" means any tax exempt religious, educational, veteran's, fraternal, sporting, service, nonprofit medical, volunteer rescue service, volunteer firefighter's, senior citizen's, historic railroad educational, youth athletic, amateur athletic, or youth athletic park organization. An organization is tax exempt if the organization is, and has received from the internal revenue service a determination letter that currently is in effect stating that the organization is, exempt from federal income taxation under subsection 501(a) and described in subsection 501(c)(3), 501(c)(4), 501(c)(8), 501(c)(10), or 501(c)(19) of the Internal Revenue Code, or if the organization is a sporting organization that is exempt from federal income taxation under subsection 501(a) and is described in subsection 501(c)(7) of the Internal Revenue Code. To qualify as a charitable organization, an organization, except a volunteer rescue service or volunteer fire fighter's firefighter's organization, shall have been in continuous existence as such in this state for a period of two years immediately preceding either the making of an application for a bingo license under section 2915.08 or 2915.083 of the Revised Code or the conducting of any game of chance as provided in division (D) of section 2915.02 of the Revised Code. A charitable organization that is exempt from federal income taxation under subsection 501(a) and described in subsection 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and that is created by a veteran's organization, a fraternal organization, or a sporting organization does not have to have been in continuous existence as such in this state for a period of two years immediately preceding either the making of an application for a bingo license under section 2915.08 or 2915.083 of the Revised Code or the conducting of any game of chance as provided in division (D) of section 2915.02 of the Revised Code.
(I) "Religious organization" means any church, body of communicants, or group that is not organized or operated for profit and that gathers in common membership for regular worship and religious observances.
(J) "Educational organization" means any organization within this state that is not organized for profit, the primary purpose of which is to educate and develop the capabilities of individuals through instruction by means of operating or contributing to the support of a school, academy, college, or university.
(K) "Veteran's organization" means any individual post or state headquarters of a national veteran's association or an auxiliary unit of any individual post of a national veteran's association, which post, state headquarters, or auxiliary unit has been in continuous existence in this state for at least two years and incorporated as a nonprofit corporation and either has received a letter from the state headquarters of the national veteran's association indicating that the individual post or auxiliary unit is in good standing with the national veteran's association or has received a letter from the national veteran's association indicating that the state headquarters is in good standing with the national veteran's association. As used in this division, "national veteran's association" means any veteran's association that has been in continuous existence as such for a period of at least five years and either is incorporated by an act of the United States congress or has a national dues-paying membership of at least five thousand persons.
(L) "Volunteer firefighter's organization" means any organization of volunteer firefighters, as defined in section 146.01 of the Revised Code, that is organized and operated exclusively to provide financial support for a volunteer fire department or a volunteer fire company and that is recognized or ratified by a county, municipal corporation, or township.
(M) "Fraternal organization" means any society, order, state headquarters, or association within this state, except a college or high school fraternity, that is not organized for profit, that is a branch, lodge, or chapter of a national or state organization, that exists exclusively for the common business or sodality of its members, and that has been in continuous existence in this state for a period of five years.
(N) "Volunteer rescue service organization" means any organization of volunteers organized to function as an emergency medical service organization, as defined in section 4765.01 of the Revised Code.
(O) "Service organization" means either of the following:
(1) Any organization, not organized for profit, that is organized and operated exclusively to provide, or to contribute to the support of organizations or institutions organized and operated exclusively to provide, medical and therapeutic services for persons who are crippled, born with birth defects, or have any other mental or physical defect or those organized and operated exclusively to protect, or to contribute to the support of organizations or institutions organized and operated exclusively to protect, animals from inhumane treatment or provide immediate shelter to victims of domestic violence;
(2) Any organization that is described in subsection 509(a)(1), 509(a)(2), or 509(a)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and is either a governmental unit or an organization that is tax exempt under subsection 501(a) and described in subsection 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and that is an organization, not organized for profit, that is organized and operated primarily to provide, or to contribute to the support of organizations or institutions organized and operated primarily to provide, medical and therapeutic services for persons who are crippled, born with birth defects, or have any other mental or physical defect.
(P) "Nonprofit medical organization" means either of the following:
(1) Any organization that has been incorporated as a nonprofit corporation for at least five years and that has continuously operated and will be operated exclusively to provide, or to contribute to the support of organizations or institutions organized and operated exclusively to provide, hospital, medical, research, or therapeutic services for the public;
(2) Any organization that is described and qualified under subsection 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, that has been incorporated as a nonprofit corporation for at least five years, and that has continuously operated and will be operated primarily to provide, or to contribute to the support of organizations or institutions organized and operated primarily to provide, hospital, medical, research, or therapeutic services for the public.
(Q) "Senior citizen's organization" means any private organization, not organized for profit, that is organized and operated exclusively to provide recreational or social services for persons who are fifty-five years of age or older and that is described and qualified under subsection 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.
(R) "Charitable bingo game" means any bingo game described in division (S)(1) or (2) of this section that is conducted by a charitable organization that has obtained a license pursuant to section 2915.08 or 2915.083 of the Revised Code and the proceeds of which are used for a charitable purpose.
(S) "Bingo" means either of the following:
(1) A game with all of the following characteristics:
(a) The participants use bingo cards or sheets, including paper formats and electronic representation or image formats, that are divided into twenty-five spaces arranged in five horizontal and five vertical rows of spaces, with each space, except the central space, being designated by a combination of a letter and a number and with the central space being designated as a free space.
(b) The participants cover the spaces on the bingo cards or sheets that correspond to combinations of letters and numbers that are announced by a bingo game operator.
(c) A bingo game operator announces combinations of letters and numbers that appear on objects that a bingo game operator selects by chance, either manually or mechanically, from a receptacle that contains seventy-five objects at the beginning of each game, each object marked by a different combination of a letter and a number that corresponds to one of the seventy-five possible combinations of a letter and a number that can appear on the bingo cards or sheets.
(d) The winner of the bingo game includes any participant who properly announces during the interval between the announcements of letters and numbers as described in division (S)(1)(c) of this section, that a predetermined and preannounced pattern of spaces has been covered on a bingo card or sheet being used by the participant.
(2) Instant bingo, punch boards, and raffles.
(T) "Conduct" means to back, promote, organize, manage, carry on, sponsor, or prepare for the operation of bingo or a game of chance.
(U) "Bingo game operator" means any person, except security personnel, who performs work or labor at the site of bingo, including, but not limited to, collecting money from participants, handing out bingo cards or sheets or objects to cover spaces on bingo cards or sheets, selecting from a receptacle the objects that contain the combination of letters and numbers that appear on bingo cards or sheets, calling out the combinations of letters and numbers, distributing prizes, selling or redeeming instant bingo tickets or cards, supervising the operation of a punch board, selling raffle tickets, selecting raffle tickets from a receptacle and announcing the winning numbers in a raffle, and preparing, selling, and serving food or beverages.
(V) "Participant" means any person who plays bingo.
(W) "Bingo session" means a period that includes both of the following:
(1) Not to exceed five continuous hours for the conduct of one or more games described in division (S)(1) of this section, instant bingo, and seal cards;
(2) A period for the conduct of instant bingo and seal cards for not more than two hours before and not more than two hours after the period described in division (W)(1) of this section.
(X) "Gross receipts" means all money or assets, including admission fees, that a person receives from bingo without the deduction of any amounts for prizes paid out or for the expenses of conducting bingo. "Gross receipts" does not include any money directly taken in from the sale of food or beverages by a charitable organization conducting bingo, or by a bona fide auxiliary unit or society of a charitable organization conducting bingo, provided all of the following apply:
(1) The auxiliary unit or society has been in existence as a bona fide auxiliary unit or society of the charitable organization for at least two years prior to conducting bingo.
(2) The person who purchases the food or beverage receives nothing of value except the food or beverage and items customarily received with the purchase of that food or beverage.
(3) The food and beverages are sold at customary and reasonable prices.
(Y) "Security personnel" includes any person who either is a sheriff, deputy sheriff, marshal, deputy marshal, township constable, or member of an organized police department of a municipal corporation or has successfully completed a peace officer's training course pursuant to sections 109.71 to 109.79 of the Revised Code and who is hired to provide security for the premises on which bingo is conducted.
(Z) "Charitable purpose" means that the net profit of bingo, other than instant bingo, is used by, or is given, donated, or otherwise transferred to, any of the following:
(1) Any organization that is described in subsection 509(a)(1), 509(a)(2), or 509(a)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and is either a governmental unit or an organization that is tax exempt under subsection 501(a) and described in subsection 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code;
(2) A veteran's organization that is a post, chapter, or organization of veterans, or an auxiliary unit or society of, or a trust or foundation for, any such post, chapter, or organization organized in the United States or any of its possessions, at least seventy-five per cent of the members of which are veterans and substantially all of the other members of which are individuals who are spouses, widows, or widowers of veterans, or such individuals, provided that no part of the net earnings of such post, chapter, or organization inures to the benefit of any private shareholder or individual, and further provided that the net profit is used by the post, chapter, or organization for the charitable purposes set forth in division (B)(12) of section 5739.02 of the Revised Code, is used for awarding scholarships to or for attendance at an institution mentioned in division (B)(12) of section 5739.02 of the Revised Code, is donated to a governmental agency, or is used for nonprofit youth activities, the purchase of United States or Ohio flags that are donated to schools, youth groups, or other bona fide nonprofit organizations, promotion of patriotism, or disaster relief;
(3) A fraternal organization that has been in continuous existence in this state for fifteen years and that uses the net profit exclusively for religious, charitable, scientific, literary, or educational purposes, or for the prevention of cruelty to children or animals, if contributions for such use would qualify as a deductible charitable contribution under subsection 170 of the Internal Revenue Code;
(4) A volunteer firefighter's organization that uses the net profit for the purposes set forth in division (L) of this section.
(AA) "Internal Revenue Code" means the "Internal Revenue Code of 1986," 100 Stat. 2085, 26 U.S.C. 1, as now or hereafter amended.
(BB) "Youth athletic organization" means any organization, not organized for profit, that is organized and operated exclusively to provide financial support to, or to operate, athletic activities for persons who are twenty-one years of age or younger by means of sponsoring, organizing, operating, or contributing to the support of an athletic team, club, league, or association.
(CC) "Youth athletic park organization" means any organization, not organized for profit, that satisfies both of the following:
(1) It owns, operates, and maintains playing fields that satisfy both of the following:
(a) The playing fields are used at least one hundred days per year for athletic activities by one or more organizations, not organized for profit, each of which is organized and operated exclusively to provide financial support to, or to operate, athletic activities for persons who are eighteen years of age or younger by means of sponsoring, organizing, operating, or contributing to the support of an athletic team, club, league, or association.
(b) The playing fields are not used for any profit-making activity at any time during the year.
(2) It uses the proceeds of bingo it conducts exclusively for the operation, maintenance, and improvement of its playing fields of the type described in division (CC)(1) of this section.
(DD) "Amateur athletic organization" means any organization, not organized for profit, that is organized and operated exclusively to provide financial support to, or to operate, athletic activities for persons who are training for amateur athletic competition that is sanctioned by a national governing body as defined in the "Amateur Sports Act of 1978," 90 Stat. 3045, 36 U.S.C.A. 373.
(EE) "Bingo supplies" means bingo cards or sheets; instant bingo tickets or cards; electronic bingo aids; raffle tickets; punch boards; seal cards; instant bingo ticket dispensers; and devices for selecting or displaying the combination of bingo letters and numbers or raffle tickets. Items that are "bingo supplies" are not gambling devices if sold or otherwise provided, and used, in accordance with this chapter. For purposes of this chapter, "bingo supplies" are not to be considered equipment used to conduct a bingo game.
(FF) "Instant bingo" means a form of bingo that uses folded or banded tickets or paper cards with perforated break-open tabs, a face of which is covered or otherwise hidden from view to conceal a number, letter, or symbol, or set of numbers, letters, or symbols, some of which have been designated in advance as prize winners. "Instant bingo" includes seal cards. "Instant bingo" does not include any device that is activated by the insertion of a coin, currency, token, or an equivalent, and that contains as one of its components a video display monitor that is capable of displaying numbers, letters, symbols, or characters in winning or losing combinations.
(GG) "Seal card" means a form of instant bingo that uses instant bingo tickets in conjunction with a board or placard that contains one or more seals that, when removed or opened, reveal predesignated winning numbers, letters, or symbols.
(HH) "Raffle" means a form of bingo in which the one or more prizes are won by one or more persons who have purchased a raffle ticket. The one or more winners of the raffle are determined by drawing a ticket stub or other detachable section from a receptacle containing ticket stubs or detachable sections corresponding to all tickets sold for the raffle.
(II) "Punch board" means a board containing a number of holes or receptacles of uniform size in which are placed, mechanically and randomly, serially numbered slips of paper that may be punched or drawn from the hole or receptacle when used in conjunction with instant bingo. A player may punch or draw the numbered slips of paper from the holes or receptacles and obtain the prize established for the game if the number drawn corresponds to a winning number or, if the punch board includes the use of a seal card, a potential winning number.
(JJ) "Gross profit" means gross receipts minus the amount actually expended for the payment of prize awards.
(KK) "Net profit" means gross profit minus expenses.
(LL) "Expenses" means the reasonable amount of gross profit actually expended for all of the following:
(1) The purchase or lease of bingo supplies;
(2) The annual license fee required under section 2915.08 of the Revised Code;
(3) Bank fees and service charges for a bingo session or game account described in section 2915.10 of the Revised Code;
(4) Audits and accounting services;
(5) Safes;
(6) Cash registers;
(7) Hiring security personnel;
(8) Advertising bingo;
(9) Renting premises in which to conduct a bingo session;
(10) Tables and chairs;
(11) Expenses for maintaining and operating a charitable organization's facilities, including, but not limited to, a post home, club house, lounge, tavern, or canteen and any grounds attached to the post home, club house, lounge, tavern, or canteen;
(12) Any other product or service directly related to the conduct of bingo that is authorized in rules adopted by the attorney general under division (B)(1) of section 2915.08 of the Revised Code.
(MM) "Person" has the same meaning as in section 1.59 of the Revised Code and includes any firm or any other legal entity, however organized.
(NN) "Revoke" means to void permanently all rights and privileges of the holder of a license issued under section 2915.08, 2915.081, or 2915.082, or 2915.083 of the Revised Code or a charitable gaming license issued by another jurisdiction.
(OO) "Suspend" means to interrupt temporarily all rights and privileges of the holder of a license issued under section 2915.08, 2915.081, or 2915.082, or 2915.083 of the Revised Code or a charitable gaming license issued by another jurisdiction.
(PP) "Distributor" means any person who purchases or obtains bingo supplies and who does either of the following:
(1) Sells, offers for sale, or otherwise provides or offers to provide the bingo supplies to another person for use in this state;
(2) Modifies, converts, adds to, or removes parts from the bingo supplies to further their promotion or sale for use in this state.
(QQ) "Manufacturer" means any person who assembles completed bingo supplies from raw materials, other items, or subparts or who modifies, converts, adds to, or removes parts from bingo supplies to further their promotion or sale.
(RR) "Gross annual revenues" means the annual gross receipts derived from the conduct of bingo described in division (S)(1) of this section plus the annual net profit derived from the conduct of bingo described in division (S)(2) of this section.
(SS) "Instant bingo ticket dispenser" means a mechanical device that dispenses an instant bingo ticket or card as the sole item of value dispensed and that has the following characteristics:
(1) It is activated upon the insertion of United States currency.
(2) It performs no gaming functions.
(3) It does not contain a video display monitor or generate noise.
(4) It is not capable of displaying any numbers, letters, symbols, or characters in winning or losing combinations.
(5) It does not simulate or display rolling or spinning reels.
(6) It is incapable of determining whether a dispensed bingo ticket or card is a winning or nonwinning ticket or card and requires a winning ticket or card to be paid by a bingo game operator.
(7) It may provide accounting and security features to aid in accounting for the instant bingo tickets or cards it dispenses.
(8) It is not part of an electronic network and is not interactive.
(TT)(1) "Electronic bingo aid" means an electronic device used by a participant to monitor bingo cards or sheets purchased at the time and place of a bingo session and that does all of the following:
(a) It provides a means for a participant to input numbers and letters announced by a bingo caller.
(b) It compares the numbers and letters entered by the participant to the bingo faces previously stored in the memory of the device.
(c) It identifies a winning bingo pattern.
(2) "Electronic bingo aid" does not include any device into which a coin, currency, token, or an equivalent is inserted to activate play.
(UU) "Deal of instant bingo tickets" means a single game of instant bingo tickets all with the same serial number.
(VV)(1) "Slot machine" machine means either of the following:
(a) Any mechanical, electronic, video, or digital device that is capable of accepting anything of value, directly or indirectly, from or on behalf of a player who gives the thing of value in the hope of gain, the outcome of which is determined largely or wholly by chance;
(b) Any mechanical, electronic, video, or digital device that is capable of accepting anything of value, directly or indirectly, from or on behalf of a player to conduct or dispense bingo or a scheme or game of chance.
(2) "Slot machine" does not include a skill-based amusement machine.
(WW) "Net profit from the proceeds of the sale of instant bingo" means gross profit minus the ordinary, necessary, and reasonable expense expended for the purchase of instant bingo supplies.
(XX) "Charitable instant bingo organization" means an organization that is exempt from federal income taxation under subsection 501(a) and described in subsection 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and is a charitable organization as defined in this section. A "charitable instant bingo organization" does not include a charitable organization that is exempt from federal income taxation under subsection 501(a) and described in subsection 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and that is created by a veteran's organization, a fraternal organization, or a sporting organization in regards to bingo conducted or assisted by a veteran's organization, a fraternal organization, or a sporting organization pursuant to section 2915.13 of the Revised Code.
(YY) "Game flare" means the board or placard that accompanies each deal of instant bingo tickets and that has printed on or affixed to it the following information for the game:
(1) The name of the game;
(2) The manufacturer's name or distinctive logo;
(3) The form number;
(4) The ticket count;
(5) The prize structure, including the number of winning instant bingo tickets by denomination and the respective winning symbol or number combinations for the winning instant bingo tickets;
(6) The cost per play;
(7) The serial number of the game.
(ZZ) "Historic railroad educational organization" means an organization that is exempt from federal income taxation under subsection 501(a) and described in subsection 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, that owns in fee simple the tracks and the right of way of a historic railroad that the organization restores or maintains and on which the organization provides excursions as part of a program to promote tourism and educate visitors regarding the role of railroad transportation in Ohio history, and that received as donations from a charitable organization that holds a license to conduct bingo under this chapter an amount equal to at least fifty per cent of that licensed charitable organization's net proceeds from the conduct of bingo during each of the five years preceding June 30, 2003. "Historic railroad" means all or a portion of the tracks and right-of-way of a railroad that was owned and operated by a for-profit common carrier in this state at any time prior to January 1, 1950.
(AAA)(1) "Skill-based amusement machine" means a skill-based amusement device, such as a mechanical, electronic, video, or digital device, or machine, whether or not the skill-based amusement machine requires payment for use through a coin or bill validator or other payment of consideration or value to participate in the machine's offering or to activate the machine, provided that all of the following apply:
(a) The machine involves a task, game, play, contest, competition, or tournament in which the player actively participates in the task, game, play, contest, competition, or tournament.
(b) The outcome of an individual's play and participation is not determined largely or wholly by chance.
(c) The outcome of play during a game is not controlled by a person not actively participating in the game.
(2) All of the following apply to any machine that is operated as described in division (AAA)(1) of this section:
(a) As used in this section, "task," "game," and "play" mean one event from the initial activation of the machine until the results of play are determined without payment of additional consideration. An individual utilizing a machine that involves a single task, game, play, contest, competition, or tournament may be awarded prizes based on the results of play.
(b) Advance play for a single task, game, play, contest, competition, or tournament participation may be purchased. The cost of the contest, competition, or tournament participation may be greater than a single non-contest, competition, or tournament play.
(c) To the extent that the machine is used in a contest, competition, or tournament, that contest, competition, or tournament has a defined starting and ending date and is open to participants in competition for scoring and ranking results toward the awarding of prizes that are stated prior to the start of the contest, competition, or tournament.
(BBB) "Pool not conducted for profit" means a scheme in which a participant gives a valuable consideration for a chance to win a prize and the total amount of consideration wagered is distributed to a participant or participants.
(CCC) "Sporting organization" means a hunting, fishing, or trapping organization, other than a college or high school fraternity or sorority, that is not organized for profit, that is affiliated with a state or national sporting organization, including but not limited to, the Ohio League league of sportsmen, and that has been in continuous existence in this state for a period of three years.
(DDD) "Community action agency" has the same meaning as in section 122.66 of the Revised Code.
Sec. 2915.02.  (A) No person shall do any of the following:
(1) Engage in bookmaking, or knowingly engage in conduct that facilitates bookmaking;
(2) Establish, promote, or operate or knowingly engage in conduct that facilitates any game of chance conducted for profit or any scheme of chance;
(3) Knowingly procure, transmit, exchange, or engage in conduct that facilitates the procurement, transmission, or exchange of information for use in establishing odds or determining winners in connection with bookmaking or with any game of chance conducted for profit or any scheme of chance;
(4) Engage in betting or in playing any scheme or game of chance as a substantial source of income or livelihood;
(5) With purpose to violate division (A)(1), (2), (3), or (4) of this section, acquire, possess, control, or operate any gambling device.
(B) For purposes of division (A)(1) of this section, a person facilitates bookmaking if the person in any way knowingly aids an illegal bookmaking operation, including, without limitation, placing a bet with a person engaged in or facilitating illegal bookmaking. For purposes of division (A)(2) of this section, a person facilitates a game of chance conducted for profit or a scheme of chance if the person in any way knowingly aids in the conduct or operation of any such game or scheme, including, without limitation, playing any such game or scheme.
(C) This section does not prohibit conduct in connection with gambling expressly permitted by law.
(D) This section does not apply to any of the following:
(1) Games of chance, if all of the following apply:
(a) The games of chance are not craps for money or roulette for money.
(b) The games of chance are conducted by a charitable organization that is, and has received from the internal revenue service a determination letter that is currently in effect, stating that the organization is, exempt from federal income taxation under subsection 501(a) and described in subsection 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.
(c) The games of chance are conducted at festivals of the charitable organization that are conducted either for a period of four consecutive days or less and not more than twice a year or for a period of five consecutive days not more than once a year, and are conducted on premises owned by the charitable organization for a period of no less than one year immediately preceding the conducting of the games of chance, on premises leased from a governmental unit, or on premises that are leased from a veteran's or fraternal organization and that have been owned by the lessor veteran's or fraternal organization for a period of no less than one year immediately preceding the conducting of the games of chance.
A charitable organization shall not lease premises from a veteran's or fraternal organization to conduct a festival described in division (D)(1)(c) of this section if the veteran's or fraternal organization already has leased the premises four times during the preceding year to charitable organizations for that purpose. If a charitable organization leases premises from a veteran's or fraternal organization to conduct a festival described in division (D)(1)(c) of this section, the charitable organization shall not pay a rental rate for the premises per day of the festival that exceeds the rental rate per bingo session that a charitable organization may pay under division (B)(1) of section 2915.09 of the Revised Code when it leases premises from another charitable organization to conduct bingo games.
(d) All of the money or assets received from the games of chance after deduction only of prizes paid out during the conduct of the games of chance are used by, or given, donated, or otherwise transferred to, any organization that is described in subsection 509(a)(1), 509(a)(2), or 509(a)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and is either a governmental unit or an organization that is tax exempt under subsection 501(a) and described in subsection 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code;
(e) The games of chance are not conducted during, or within ten hours of, a bingo game conducted for amusement purposes only pursuant to section 2915.12 of the Revised Code.
No person shall receive any commission, wage, salary, reward, tip, donation, gratuity, or other form of compensation, directly or indirectly, for operating or assisting in the operation of any game of chance.
(2) Any tag fishing tournament operated under a permit issued under section 1533.92 of the Revised Code, as "tag fishing tournament" is defined in section 1531.01 of the Revised Code;
(3) Bingo conducted by a charitable organization that holds a license issued under section 2915.08 or 2915.083 of the Revised Code.
(E) Division (D) of this section shall not be construed to authorize the sale, lease, or other temporary or permanent transfer of the right to conduct games of chance, as granted by that division, by any charitable organization that is granted that right.
(F) Whoever violates this section is guilty of gambling, a misdemeanor of the first degree. If the offender previously has been convicted of any gambling offense, gambling is a felony of the fifth degree.
Sec. 2915.07.  (A) No person, except a charitable organization that has obtained a license pursuant to section 2915.08 or 2915.083 of the Revised Code, shall conduct or advertise bingo. This division does not apply to a raffle that a charitable organization conducts or advertises.
(B) Whoever violates this section is guilty of conducting illegal bingo, a felony of the fourth degree.
Sec. 2915.081.  (A) No distributor shall sell, offer to sell, or otherwise provide or offer to provide bingo supplies to another person, or modify, convert, add to, or remove parts from bingo supplies to further their promotion or sale, for use in this state without having obtained a license from the attorney general under this section.
(B) The attorney general may issue a distributor license to any person that meets the requirements of this section. The application for the license shall be on a form prescribed by the attorney general and be accompanied by the annual fee prescribed by this section. The license is valid for a period of one year, and the annual fee for the license is five thousand dollars.
(C) The attorney general may refuse to issue a distributor license to any person to which any of the following applies, or to any person that has an officer, partner, or other person who has an ownership interest of ten per cent or more and to whom any of the following applies:
(1) The person, officer, or partner has been convicted of a felony under the laws of this state, another state, or the United States.
(2) The person, officer, or partner has been convicted of any gambling offense.
(3) The person, officer, or partner has made an incorrect or false statement that is material to the granting of a license in an application submitted to the attorney general under this section or in a similar application submitted to a gambling licensing authority in another jurisdiction if the statement resulted in license revocation through administrative action in the other jurisdiction.
(4) The person, officer, or partner has submitted any incorrect or false information relating to the application to the attorney general under this section, if the information is material to the granting of the license.
(5) The person, officer, or partner has failed to correct any incorrect or false information that is material to the granting of the license in the records required to be maintained under division (E) of section 2915.10 of the Revised Code.
(6) The person, officer, or partner has had a license related to gambling revoked or suspended under the laws of this state, another state, or the United States.
(D) The attorney general shall not issue a distributor license to any person that is involved in the conduct of bingo on behalf of a charitable organization or that is a lessor of premises used for the conduct of bingo. This division does not prohibit a distributor from advising charitable organizations on the use and benefit of specific bingo supplies or prohibit a distributor from advising a customer on operational methods to improve bingo profitability.
(E)(1) No distributor shall sell, offer to sell, or otherwise provide or offer to provide bingo supplies to any person, or modify, convert, add to, or remove parts from bingo supplies to further their promotion or sale, for use in this state except to or for the use of a charitable organization that has been issued a license under section 2915.08 or 2915.083 of the Revised Code or to another distributor that has been issued a license under this section. No distributor shall accept payment for the sale or other provision of bingo supplies other than by check.
(2) No distributor may donate, give, loan, lease, or otherwise provide any bingo supplies or equipment, or modify, convert, add to, or remove parts from bingo supplies to further their promotion or sale, to or for the use of a charitable organization for use in a bingo session conditioned on or in consideration for an exclusive right to provide bingo supplies to the charitable organization. A distributor may provide a licensed charitable organization with free samples of the distributor's products to be used as prizes or to be used for the purpose of sampling.
(3) No distributor shall purchase bingo supplies for use in this state from any person except from a manufacturer issued a license under section 2915.082 of the Revised Code or from another distributor issued a license under this section. Subject to division (D) of section 2915.082 of the Revised Code, no distributor shall pay for purchased bingo supplies other than by check.
(4) No distributor shall participate in the conduct of bingo on behalf of a charitable organization or have any direct or indirect ownership interest in a premises used for the conduct of bingo.
(5) No distributor shall knowingly solicit, offer, pay, or receive any kickback, bribe, or undocumented rebate, directly or indirectly, overtly or covertly, in cash or in kind, in return for providing bingo supplies to any person in this state.
(F) The attorney general may suspend or revoke a distributor license for any of the reasons for which the attorney general may refuse to issue a distributor license specified in division (C) of this section or if the distributor holding the license violates any provision of this chapter or any rule adopted by the attorney general under this chapter.
(G) Whoever violates division (A) or (E) of this section is guilty of illegally operating as a distributor. Except as otherwise provided in this division, illegally operating as a distributor is a misdemeanor of the first degree. If the offender previously has been convicted of a violation of division (A) or (E) of this section, illegally operating as a distributor is a felony of the fifth degree.
Sec. 2915.083. (A) At least thirty business days before the event, a charitable organization that does not have a license to conduct bingo under section 2915.08 of the Revised Code and that desires to conduct bingo, instant bingo at a bingo session, or instant bingo other than at a bingo session at an event shall make out, upon a form to be furnished by the attorney general for that purpose, an application for a short-term license to conduct bingo, instant bingo at a bingo session, or instant bingo other than at a bingo session and deliver that application to the attorney general together with a license fee of fifty dollars. The short-term license shall be in effect for seventy-two hours from the time when the event begins. A charitable organization may apply for no more than two short-term licenses to conduct bingo, instant bingo at a bingo session, or instant bingo other than at a bingo session during a calendar year.
(B)(1) The application shall be in the form prescribed by the attorney general, shall be signed and sworn to by the applicant, and shall contain the information described in divisions (A)(2)(a) to (f) of section 2915.08 of the Revised Code.
(2) The charitable organization is not required to submit information on the application other than the information that is described in divisions (A)(2)(a) to (f) of section 2915.08 of the Revised Code.
(C) Except as otherwise provided in division (D) of this section, the attorney general shall issue a short-term license to conduct bingo, instant bingo at a bingo session, or instant bingo other than at a bingo session to a charitable organization that timely submits an application under division (A) of this section within ten business days after receiving the application from the charitable organization.
(D) The attorney general may refuse to grant a short-term license to conduct bingo, instant bingo at a bingo session, or instant bingo other than at a bingo session to any charitable organization, or revoke or suspend the short-term license of any charitable organization, that does any of the following or to which any of the following applies:
(1) The organization fails or has failed at any time to meet any requirement of section 109.26, 109.31, or 1716.02, or sections 2915.07 to 2915.11 of the Revised Code, or violates or has violated any provision of sections 2915.02 or 2915.07 to 2915.13 of the Revised Code or any rule adopted by the attorney general pursuant to this section.
(2) The organization makes or has made an incorrect or false statement that is material to the granting of the short-term license to conduct bingo, instant bingo at a bingo session, or instant bingo other than at a bingo session in an application filed pursuant to division (A) of this section.
(3) The organization submits or has submitted any incorrect or false information relating to an application filed pursuant to division (A) of this section if the information is material to the granting of the short-term license to conduct bingo, instant bingo at a bingo session, or instant bingo other than at a bingo session.
(4) The attorney general has good cause to believe that the organization will not conduct bingo, instant bingo at a bingo session, or instant bingo other than at a bingo session in accordance with sections 2915.07 to 2915.13 of the Revised Code.
(E) A short-term license to conduct bingo, instant bingo at a bingo session, or instant bingo other than at a bingo session issued by the attorney general shall set forth the information contained on the application of the charitable organization that the attorney general determines is relevant, including, but not limited to, the location at which the organization will conduct bingo, instant bingo at a bingo session, or instant bingo other than at a bingo session, and the dates and times on each of those dates when bingo will be conducted. If the attorney general refuses to grant or revokes or suspends a short-term license to conduct bingo, instant bingo at a bingo session, or instant bingo other than at a bingo session, the attorney general shall notify the applicant in writing and specifically identify the reason for the refusal, revocation, or suspension in narrative form and, if applicable, by identifying the section of the Revised Code violated. The failure of the attorney general to give the written notice of the reasons for the refusal, revocation, or suspension or a mistake in the written notice does not affect the validity of the attorney general's refusal to grant, or the revocation or suspension of, a short-term license to conduct bingo, instant bingo at a bingo session, or instant bingo other than at a bingo session. If the attorney general fails to give the written notice or if there is a mistake in the written notice, the applicant may bring an action to compel the attorney general to comply with this division or to correct the mistake, but the attorney general's order refusing to grant, or revoking or suspending, a short-term license to conduct bingo, instant bingo at a bingo session, or instant bingo other than at a bingo session shall not be enjoined during the pendency of the action.
Sec. 2915.09.  (A) No charitable organization that conducts bingo shall fail to do any of the following:
(1) Own all of the equipment used to conduct bingo or lease that equipment from a charitable organization that is licensed to conduct bingo for a rental rate that is not more than is customary and reasonable for that equipment;
(2) Except as otherwise provided in division (A)(3) of this section, use all of the gross receipts from bingo for paying prizes, for reimbursement of expenses for or for renting premises in which to conduct a bingo session, for reimbursement of expenses for or for purchasing or leasing bingo supplies used in conducting bingo, for reimbursement of expenses for or for hiring security personnel, for reimbursement of expenses for or for advertising bingo, or for reimbursement of other expenses or for other expenses listed in division (LL) of section 2915.01 of the Revised Code, provided that the amount of the receipts so spent is not more than is customary and reasonable for a similar purchase, lease, hiring, advertising, or expense. If the building in which bingo is conducted is owned by the charitable organization conducting bingo and the bingo conducted includes a form of bingo described in division (S)(1) of section 2915.01 of the Revised Code, the charitable organization may deduct from the total amount of the gross receipts from each session a sum equal to the lesser of six hundred dollars or forty-five per cent of the gross receipts from the bingo described in that division as consideration for the use of the premises.
(3) Use, or give, donate, or otherwise transfer, all of the net profit derived from bingo, other than instant bingo, for a charitable purpose listed in its license application and described in division (Z) of section 2915.01 of the Revised Code, or distribute all of the net profit from the proceeds of the sale of instant bingo as stated in its license application and in accordance with section 2915.101 of the Revised Code.
(B) No charitable organization that conducts a bingo game described in division (S)(1) of section 2915.01 of the Revised Code shall fail to do any of the following:
(1) Conduct the bingo game on premises that are owned by the charitable organization, on premises that are owned by another charitable organization and leased from that charitable organization for a rental rate not in excess of the lesser of six hundred dollars per bingo session or forty-five per cent of the gross receipts of the bingo session, on premises that are leased from a person other than a charitable organization for a rental rate that is not more than is customary and reasonable for premises that are similar in location, size, and quality but not in excess of four hundred fifty dollars per bingo session, or on premises that are owned by a person other than a charitable organization, that are leased from that person by another charitable organization, and that are subleased from that other charitable organization by the charitable organization for a rental rate not in excess of four hundred fifty dollars per bingo session. If the charitable organization leases from a person other than a charitable organization the premises on which it conducts bingo sessions, the lessor of the premises shall provide only the premises to the organization and shall not provide the organization with bingo game operators, security personnel, concessions or concession operators, bingo supplies, or any other type of service or equipment. A charitable organization shall not lease or sublease premises that it owns or leases to more than one other charitable organization per calendar week for the purpose of conducting bingo sessions on the premises. A person that is not a charitable organization shall not lease premises that it owns, leases, or otherwise is empowered to lease to more than one charitable organization per calendar week for conducting bingo sessions on the premises. In no case shall more than two bingo sessions be conducted on any premises in any calendar week.
(2) Display its license conspicuously at the premises where the bingo session is conducted;
(3) Conduct the bingo session in accordance with the definition of bingo set forth in division (S)(1) of section 2915.01 of the Revised Code.
(C) No charitable organization that conducts a bingo game described in division (S)(1) of section 2915.01 of the Revised Code shall do any of the following:
(1) Pay any compensation to a bingo game operator for operating a bingo session that is conducted by the charitable organization or for preparing, selling, or serving food or beverages at the site of the bingo session, permit any auxiliary unit or society of the charitable organization to pay compensation to any bingo game operator who prepares, sells, or serves food or beverages at a bingo session conducted by the charitable organization, or permit any auxiliary unit or society of the charitable organization to prepare, sell, or serve food or beverages at a bingo session conducted by the charitable organization, if the auxiliary unit or society pays any compensation to the bingo game operators who prepare, sell, or serve the food or beverages;
(2) Pay consulting fees to any person for any services performed in relation to the bingo session;
(3) Pay concession fees to any person who provides refreshments to the participants in the bingo session;
(4) Except as otherwise provided in division (C)(4) of this section, conduct more than two bingo sessions in any seven-day period. A volunteer firefighter's organization or a volunteer rescue service organization that conducts not more than five bingo sessions in a calendar year may conduct more than two bingo sessions in a seven-day period after notifying the attorney general when it will conduct the sessions.
(5) Pay out more than three thousand five hundred dollars in prizes for bingo games described in division (S)(1) of section 2915.01 of the Revised Code during any bingo session that is conducted by the charitable organization. "Prizes" does not include awards from the conduct of instant bingo.
(6) Conduct a bingo session at any time during the ten-hour period between midnight and ten a.m., at any time during, or within ten hours of, a bingo game conducted for amusement only pursuant to section 2915.12 of the Revised Code, at any premises not specified on its license, or on any day of the week or during any time period not specified on its license. Division (A)(6) of this section does not prohibit the sale of instant bingo tickets beginning at nine a.m. for a bingo session that begins at ten a.m. If
If circumstances make it impractical for the a charitable organization that is issued a license under section 2915.08 of the Revised Code to conduct a bingo session at the premises, or on the day of the week or at the time, specified on its license or if such a charitable organization wants to conduct bingo sessions on a day of the week or at a time other than the day or time specified on its license, the charitable organization may apply in writing to the attorney general for an amended license pursuant to division (F) of section 2915.08 of the Revised Code. A charitable organization may apply twice in each calendar year for an amended license to conduct bingo sessions on a day of the week or at a time other than the day or time specified on its license. If the amended license is granted, the organization may conduct bingo sessions at the premises, on the day of the week, and at the time specified on its amended license.
(7) Permit any person whom the charitable organization knows, or should have known, is under the age of eighteen to work as a bingo game operator;
(8) Permit any person whom the charitable organization knows, or should have known, has been convicted of a felony or gambling offense in any jurisdiction to be a bingo game operator;
(9) Permit the lessor of the premises on which the bingo session is conducted, if the lessor is not a charitable organization, to provide the charitable organization with bingo game operators, security personnel, concessions, bingo supplies, or any other type of service or equipment;
(10) Purchase or lease bingo supplies from any person except a distributor issued a license under section 2915.081 of the Revised Code;
(11)(a) Use or permit the use of electronic bingo aids except under the following circumstances:
(i) For any single participant, not more than ninety bingo faces can be played using an electronic bingo aid or aids.
(ii) The charitable organization shall provide a participant using an electronic bingo aid with corresponding paper bingo cards or sheets.
(iii) The total price of bingo faces played with an electronic bingo aid shall be equal to the total price of the same number of bingo faces played with a paper bingo card or sheet sold at the same bingo session but without an electronic bingo aid.
(iv) An electronic bingo aid cannot be part of an electronic network other than a network that includes only bingo aids and devices that are located on the premises at which the bingo is being conducted or be interactive with any device not located on the premises at which the bingo is being conducted.
(v) An electronic bingo aid cannot be used to participate in bingo that is conducted at a location other than the location at which the bingo session is conducted and at which the electronic bingo aid is used.
(vi) An electronic bingo aid cannot be used to provide for the input of numbers and letters announced by a bingo caller other than the bingo caller who physically calls the numbers and letters at the location at which the bingo session is conducted and at which the electronic bingo aid is used.
(b) The attorney general may adopt rules in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code that govern the use of electronic bingo aids. The rules may include a requirement that an electronic bingo aid be capable of being audited by the attorney general to verify the number of bingo cards or sheets played during each bingo session.
(12) Permit any person the charitable organization knows, or should have known, to be under eighteen years of age to play bingo described in division (S)(1) of section 2915.01 of the Revised Code.
(D)(1) Except as otherwise provided in division (D)(3) of this section, no charitable organization shall provide to a bingo game operator, and no bingo game operator shall receive or accept, any commission, wage, salary, reward, tip, donation, gratuity, or other form of compensation, directly or indirectly, regardless of the source, for conducting bingo or providing other work or labor at the site of bingo during a bingo session.
(2) Except as otherwise provided in division (D)(3) of this section, no charitable organization shall provide to a bingo game operator any commission, wage, salary, reward, tip, donation, gratuity, or other form of compensation, directly or indirectly, regardless of the source, for conducting instant bingo other than at a bingo session at the site of instant bingo other than at a bingo session.
(3) Nothing in division (D) of this section prohibits an employee of a fraternal organization, veteran's organization, or sporting organization from selling instant bingo tickets or cards to the organization's members or invited guests, as long as no portion of the employee's compensation is paid from any receipts of bingo.
(E) Notwithstanding division (B)(1) of this section, a charitable organization that, prior to December 6, 1977, has entered into written agreements for the lease of premises it owns to another charitable organization or other charitable organizations for the conducting of bingo sessions so that more than two bingo sessions are conducted per calendar week on the premises, and a person that is not a charitable organization and that, prior to December 6, 1977, has entered into written agreements for the lease of premises it owns to charitable organizations for the conducting of more than two bingo sessions per calendar week on the premises, may continue to lease the premises to those charitable organizations, provided that no more than four sessions are conducted per calendar week, that the lessor organization or person has notified the attorney general in writing of the organizations that will conduct the sessions and the days of the week and the times of the day on which the sessions will be conducted, that the initial lease entered into with each organization that will conduct the sessions was filed with the attorney general prior to December 6, 1977, and that each organization that will conduct the sessions was issued a license to conduct bingo games by the attorney general prior to December 6, 1977.
(F) This section does not prohibit a bingo licensed charitable organization or a game operator from giving any person an instant bingo ticket as a prize.
(G) Whoever violates division (A)(2) of this section is guilty of illegally conducting a bingo game, a felony of the fourth degree. Except as otherwise provided in this division, whoever violates division (A)(1) or (3), (B)(1), (2), or (3), (C)(1) to (12), or (D) of this section is guilty of a minor misdemeanor. If the offender previously has been convicted of a violation of division (A)(1) or (3), (B)(1), (2), or (3), (C)(1) to (11), or, (D) of this section, a violation of division (A)(1) or (3), (B)(1), (2), or (3), (C), or (D) of this section is a misdemeanor of the first degree. Whoever violates division (C)(12) of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor of the first degree, if the offender previously has been convicted of a violation of division (C)(12) of this section, a felony of the fourth degree.
Sec. 2915.091.  (A) No charitable organization that conducts instant bingo shall do any of the following:
(1) Fail to comply with the requirements of divisions (A)(1), (2), and (3) of section 2915.09 of the Revised Code;
(2) Conduct instant bingo unless either of the following apply:
(a) That organization is, and has received from the internal revenue service a determination letter that is currently in effect stating that the organization is, exempt from federal income taxation under subsection 501(a), is described in subsection 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, is a charitable organization as defined in section 2915.01 of the Revised Code, is in good standing in the state pursuant to section 2915.08 or 2915.083 of the Revised Code, and is in compliance with Chapter 1716. of the Revised Code;
(b) That organization is, and has received from the internal revenue service a determination letter that is currently in effect stating that the organization is, exempt from federal income taxation under subsection 501(a), is described in subsection 501(c)(7), 501(c)(8), 501(c)(10), or 501(c)(19) or is a veteran's organization described in subsection 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code, and conducts instant bingo under section 2915.13 of the Revised Code.
(3) Conduct instant bingo on any day, at any time, or at any premises not specified on the organization's license issued pursuant to section 2915.08 or 2915.083 of the Revised Code;
(4) Permit any person whom the organization knows or should have known has been convicted of a felony or gambling offense in any jurisdiction to be a bingo game operator in the conduct of instant bingo;
(5) Purchase or lease supplies used to conduct instant bingo or punch board games from any person except a distributor licensed under section 2915.081 of the Revised Code;
(6) Sell or provide any instant bingo ticket or card for a price different from the price printed on it by the manufacturer on either the instant bingo ticket or card or on the game flare;
(7) Sell an instant bingo ticket or card to a person under eighteen years of age;
(8) Fail to keep unsold instant bingo tickets or cards for less than three years;
(9) Pay any compensation to a bingo game operator for conducting instant bingo that is conducted by the organization or for preparing, selling, or serving food or beverages at the site of the instant bingo game, permit any auxiliary unit or society of the organization to pay compensation to any bingo game operator who prepares, sells, or serves food or beverages at an instant bingo game conducted by the organization, or permit any auxiliary unit or society of the organization to prepare, sell, or serve food or beverages at an instant bingo game conducted by the organization, if the auxiliary unit or society pays any compensation to the bingo game operators who prepare, sell, or serve the food or beverages;
(10) Pay fees to any person for any services performed in relation to an instant bingo game;
(11) Pay fees to any person who provides refreshments to the participants in an instant bingo game;
(12)(a) Allow instant bingo tickets or cards to be sold to bingo game operators at a premises at which the organization sells instant bingo tickets or cards or to be sold to employees of a D permit holder who are working at a premises at which instant bingo tickets or cards are sold;
(b) Division (A)(12)(a) of this section does not prohibit a licensed charitable organization or a bingo game operator from giving any person an instant bingo tickets ticket as a prize.
(13) Fail to display its bingo license, and the serial numbers of the deal of instant bingo tickets or cards to be sold, conspicuously at each premises at which it sells instant bingo tickets or cards;
(14) Possess a deal of instant bingo tickets or cards that was not purchased from a distributor licensed under section 2915.081 of the Revised Code as reflected on an invoice issued by the distributor that contains all of the information required by division (E) of section 2915.10 of the Revised Code;
(15) Fail, once it opens a deal of instant bingo tickets or cards, to continue to sell the tickets or cards in that deal until the tickets or cards with the top two highest tiers of prizes in that deal are sold;
(16) Purchase, lease, or use instant bingo ticket dispensers to sell instant bingo tickets or cards;
(17) Possess bingo supplies that were not obtained in accordance with sections 2915.01 to 2915.13 of the Revised Code.
(B) A charitable organization may conduct instant bingo other than at a bingo session at not more than five separate locations. A charitable organization that is exempt from federal taxation under subsection 501(a) and described in subsection 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and that is created by a veteran's organization or a fraternal organization is not limited in the number of separate locations the charitable organization may conduct instant bingo other than at a bingo session.
(C) The attorney general may adopt rules in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code that govern the conduct of instant bingo by charitable organizations. Before those rules are adopted, the attorney general shall reference the recommended standards for opacity, randomization, minimum information, winner protection, color, and cutting for instant bingo tickets or cards, seal cards, and punch boards established by the North American gaming regulators association.
(D) Whoever violates division (A) of this section or a rule adopted under division (C) of this section is guilty of illegal instant bingo conduct. Except as otherwise provided in this division, illegal instant bingo conduct is a misdemeanor of the first degree. If the offender previously has been convicted of a violation of division (A) of this section or of such a rule, illegal instant bingo conduct is a felony of the fifth degree.
Section 2. That existing sections 109.32, 2915.01, 2915.02, 2915.07, 2915.081, 2915.09, and 2915.091 of the Revised Code are hereby repealed.
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