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H. B. No. 195 As IntroducedAs Introduced
129th General Assembly | Regular Session | 2011-2012 |
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Representatives Anielski, Baker
Cosponsors:
Representatives Murray, McKenney, Slaby, Grossman, Blessing
A BILL
To amend sections 2915.01, 2915.03, 2915.06,
2915.061, 2915.08, 2915.09, 3772.01, 3772.02,
3772.03, 3772.032, 3772.033, 3772.04, 3772.06,
3772.07, 3772.10, 3772.17, 3772.21, 3772.23,
3772.30, 3772.31, and 3772.99 and to enact
sections 2915.062, 2915.063, 2915.064, 3772.34,
and 3772.35 of the Revised Code to provide
licensing of skill-based amusement machine
operators and distributors and sweepstakes
terminal device operators and distributors and to
make changes to bingo and other gambling law.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:
Section 1. That sections 2915.01, 2915.03, 2915.06, 2915.061,
2915.08, 2915.09, 3772.01, 3772.02, 3772.03, 3772.032, 3772.033,
3772.04, 3772.06, 3772.07, 3772.10, 3772.17, 3772.21, 3772.23,
3772.30, 3772.31, and 3772.99 be amended and sections 2915.062,
2915.063, 2915.064, 3772.34, and 3772.35 of the Revised Code be
enacted to read as follows:
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;
(6) Skill-based amusement machines, slot machines, or
sweepstakes terminal devices 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, 2915.06, 2915.062, 2915.063, 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 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 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 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 is
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.
(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 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. "Raffle" does
not include the drawing of a ticket stub or other detachable
section of a ticket purchased to attend a professional sporting
event if both of the following apply:
(1) The ticket stub or other detachable section is used to
select the winner of a free prize given away at the professional
sporting event; and
(2) The cost of the ticket is the same as the cost of a
ticket to the professional sporting event on days when no free
prize is given away.
(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;
(7) Hiring security personnel;
(9) Renting premises in which to conduct a bingo session;
(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) Payment of real property taxes and assessments that are
levied on a premises on which bingo is conducted;
(13) 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 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 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" 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;
(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 bingo or a scheme or game
of chance.
(2) "Slot machine" does not include a skill-based amusement
machine or an instant bingo ticket dispenser.
(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, and in the case of instant bingo conducted by a
veteran's, fraternal, or sporting organization, the payment by
that organization of real property taxes and assessments levied on
the premises in which instant bingo is conducted.
(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;
(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;
(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 mechanical,
video, digital, or electronic device that rewards the player or
players, if at all, only with merchandise prizes or with
redeemable vouchers redeemable only for merchandise prizes,
provided that with respect to rewards for playing the game all of
the following apply:
(a) The wholesale value of a merchandise prize awarded as a
result of the single play of a machine does not exceed ten
dollars;
(b) Redeemable vouchers awarded for any single play of a
machine are not redeemable for a merchandise prize with a
wholesale value of more than ten dollars;
(c) Redeemable vouchers are not redeemable for a merchandise
prize that has a wholesale value of more than ten dollars times
the fewest number of single plays necessary to accrue the
redeemable vouchers required to obtain that prize; and
(d) Any redeemable vouchers or merchandise prizes are
distributed at the site of the skill-based amusement machine at
the time of play.
(2) A device shall not be considered a skill-based amusement
machine and shall be considered a slot machine if it pays cash or
one or more of the following apply:
(a) The ability of a player to succeed at the game is
impacted by the number or ratio of prior wins to prior losses of
players playing the game.
(b) Any reward of redeemable vouchers is not based solely on
the player achieving the object of the game or the player's score;
(c) The outcome of the game, or the value of the redeemable
voucher or merchandise prize awarded for winning the game, can be
controlled by a source other than any player playing the game.
(d) The success of any player is or may be determined by a
chance event that cannot be altered by player actions.
(e) The ability of any player to succeed at the game is
determined by game features not visible or known to the player.
(f) The ability of the player to succeed at the game is
impacted by the exercise of a skill that no reasonable player
could exercise.
(3) 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, "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 game,
play, contest, competition, or tournament may be awarded
redeemable vouchers or merchandise prizes based on the results of
play.
(b) Advance play for a single 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 noncontest, 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 redeemable vouchers or merchandise prizes that are
stated prior to the start of the contest, competition, or
tournament.
(4) For purposes of division (AAA)(1) of this section, the
mere presence of a device, such as a pin-setting, ball-releasing,
or scoring mechanism, that does not contribute to or affect the
outcome of the play of the game does not make the device a
skill-based amusement machine.
(BBB) "Merchandise prize" means any item of value, but shall
not include any of the following:
(1) Cash, gift cards, or any equivalent thereof;
(2) Plays on games of chance, state lottery tickets, bingo,
or instant bingo;
(3) Firearms, tobacco, or alcoholic beverages; or
(4) A redeemable voucher that is redeemable for any of the
items listed in division (BBB)(1), (2), or (3) of this section.
(CCC) "Redeemable voucher" means any ticket, token, coupon,
receipt, or other noncash representation of value.
(DDD) "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.
(EEE) "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 of sportsmen, and
that has been in continuous existence in this state for a period
of three years.
(FFF) "Community action agency" has the same meaning as in
section 122.66 of the Revised Code.
(GGG)(1) "Sweepstakes terminal device" means a mechanical,
video, digital, or electronic machine or device, that is owned,
leased, or otherwise possessed by any person conducting a
sweepstakes, or by that person's partners, affiliates,
subsidiaries, or contractors, that is intended to be used by a
sweepstakes participant, and that is capable of displaying
information on a screen or other mechanism. A device is a
sweepstakes terminal device whether or not any of the following
apply:
(a) The device is server-based.
(b) The device uses a simulated game terminal as a
representation of the prizes associated with the results of the
sweepstakes entries.
(c) The device utilizes software such that the simulated game
influences or determines the winning of or value of the prize.
(d) The device selects prizes from a predetermined finite
pool of entries.
(e) The device utilizes a mechanism that reveals the content
of a predetermined sweepstakes entry.
(f) The device predetermines the prize results and stores
those results for delivery at the time the sweepstakes entry
results are revealed.
(g) The device utilizes software to create a game result.
(h) The device requires deposit of any money, coin, or token,
or the use of any credit card, debit card, prepaid card, or any
other method of payment to activate the electronic machine or
device.
(i) The device requires direct payment into the device, or
remote activation of the device.
(j) The device requires purchase of a related product.
(k) Any related product of which purchase is required has
legitimate value.
(l) The device reveals the prize incrementally, even though
the device does not influence the awarding of prize or the value
of any prize awarded.
(m) The device determines and associates the prize with an
entry or entries at the time the sweepstakes is entered.
(n) The device is a slot machine or other form of electrical,
mechanical, or computer game.
(2) As used in this division:
(a) "Enter" or "entry" means the act or process by which a
person becomes eligible to receive any prize offered in a
sweepstakes.
(b) "Prize" means any gift, award, gratuity, good, service,
credit, reward, or any other thing of value, which may be
transferred to a person, whether possession of the prize is
actually transferred, or placed on an account or other record as
evidence of the intent to transfer the prize.
(c) "Sweepstakes" means any game, contest, advertising scheme
or plan, or other promotion, but does not include bingo, whether
or not consideration is required for a person to enter to win or
become eligible to receive any prize, the determination of which
is based upon chance.
Sec. 2915.03. (A) No person, being the owner or lessee, or
having custody, control, or supervision of premises, shall:
(1) Use or occupy such premises for gambling in violation of
section 2915.02, 2915.06, 2915.062, or 2915.063 of the Revised
Code;
(2) Recklessly permit such premises to be used or occupied
for gambling in violation of section 2915.02, 2915.06, 2915.062,
or 2915.063 of the Revised Code.
(B) Whoever violates this section is guilty of operating a
gambling house, a misdemeanor of the first degree. If the offender
previously has been convicted of a gambling offense, operating a
gambling house is a felony of the fifth degree.
(C) Premises used or occupied in violation of this section
constitute a nuisance subject to abatement pursuant to sections
3767.01 to 3767.99 of the Revised Code.
Sec. 2915.06. (A) No person shall give to another person any
item described in division (BBB)(1), (2), (3), or (4) of section
2915.01 of the Revised Code in exchange for a noncash prize, toy,
or novelty received as a reward for playing or operating a
skill-based amusement machine or for a free or reduced-price game
won on a skill-based amusement machine.
(B) No person shall conduct a skill-based amusement machine
without first obtaining a license under Chapter 3772. of the
Revised Code.
(C) Whoever violates division (A) of this section is guilty
of skill-based amusement machine prohibited conduct. A violation
of division (A) of this section is a misdemeanor of the first
degree for each redemption of a prize that is involved in the
violation. If the offender previously has been convicted of a
violation of division (A) of this section, a violation of that
division is a felony of the fifth degree for each redemption of a
prize that is involved in the violation. The maximum fine
authorized to be imposed for a felony of the fifth degree shall be
imposed upon the offender.
(D) Whoever violates division (B) of this section is guilty
of conducting an illegal skill-based amusement machine, a felony
of the fourth degree.
Sec. 2915.061. Any regulation of skill-based amusement
machines shall be governed by this chapter and Chapter 3772. and
not by Chapter 1345. of the Revised Code.
Sec. 2915.062. (A) No person conducting a sweepstakes with
the use of a sweepstakes terminal device, including the entry
process or the reveal of a prize, shall do either of the
following:
(1) Give to another person any item or voucher redeemable for
any item described in division (BBB)(1), (2), (3), or (4) of
section 2915.01 of the Revised Code as a prize for playing or
participating in a sweepstakes;
(2) Conduct a sweepstakes through the use of a sweepstakes
terminal device without first obtaining a license under Chapter
3772. of the Revised Code.
(B) Whoever violates division (A)(1) or (2) of this section
is guilty of sweepstakes terminal device prohibited conduct. A
violation of division (A)(1) of this section is a misdemeanor of
the first degree for each redemption of a prize that is involved
in the violation. If the offender previously has been convicted of
a violation of division (A)(1) of this section, a violation of
that division is a felony of the fifth degree for each redemption
of a prize that is involved in the violation. The maximum fine
authorized to be imposed for a felony of the fifth degree shall be
imposed upon the offender.
(C) Whoever violates division (A)(2) of this section is
guilty of conducting an illegal sweepstakes, a felony of the
fourth degree.
Sec. 2915.063. (A) No person shall conduct a slot machine
without first obtaining a license pursuant to Chapter 3772. of the
Revised Code.
(B) Whoever violates this section is guilty of conducting
slot machine prohibited conduct. A violation of this section is a
felony of the fourth degree.
Sec. 2915.064. A legislative authority of a municipal
corporation or an unincorporated area of a township may adopt an
ordinance or resolution to prohibit the operation of sweepstakes
terminal devices.
Sec. 2915.08. (A)(1) Annually before the first day of
January, a charitable organization that desires to conduct bingo,
instant bingo at a bingo session, or instant bingo other than at a
bingo session shall make out, upon a form to be furnished by the
attorney general for that purpose, an application for a 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 as follows:
(a) Except as otherwise provided in this division, for a
license for the conduct of bingo, two hundred dollars;
(b) For a license for the conduct of instant bingo at a bingo
session or instant bingo other than at a bingo session for a
charitable organization that previously has not been licensed
under this chapter to conduct instant bingo at a bingo session or
instant bingo other than at a bingo session, a license fee of five
hundred dollars, and for any other charitable organization, a
license fee that is based upon the gross profits received by the
charitable organization from the operation of instant bingo at a
bingo session or instant bingo other than at a bingo session,
during the one-year period ending on the thirty-first day of
October of the year immediately preceding the year for which the
license is sought, and that is one of the following:
(i) Five hundred dollars, if the total is fifty thousand
dollars or less;
(ii) One thousand two hundred fifty dollars plus one-fourth
per cent of the gross profit, if the total is more than fifty
thousand dollars but less than two hundred fifty thousand one
dollars;
(iii) Two thousand two hundred fifty dollars plus one-half
per cent of the gross profit, if the total is more than two
hundred fifty thousand dollars but less than five hundred thousand
one dollars;
(iv) Three thousand five hundred dollars plus one per cent of
the gross profit, if the total is more than five hundred thousand
dollars but less than one million one dollars;
(v) Five thousand dollars plus one per cent of the gross
profit, if the total is one million one dollars or more;
(c) A reduced license fee established by the attorney general
pursuant to division (G) of this section.
(d) For a license to conduct bingo for a charitable
organization that prior to the effective date of this amendment
July 1, 2003, has not been licensed under this chapter to conduct
bingo, instant bingo at a bingo session, or instant bingo other
than at a bingo session, a license fee established by rule by the
attorney general in accordance with division (H) of this section.
(2) The application shall be in the form prescribed by the
attorney general, shall be signed and sworn to by the applicant,
and shall contain all of the following:
(a) The name and post-office address of the applicant;
(b) A statement that the applicant is a charitable
organization and that it has been in continuous existence as a
charitable organization in this state for two years immediately
preceding the making of the application or for five years in the
case of a fraternal organization or a nonprofit medical
organization;
(c) The location at which the organization will conduct
bingo, which location shall be within the county in which the
principal place of business of the applicant is located, the days
of the week and the times on each of those days when bingo will be
conducted, whether the organization owns, leases, or subleases the
premises, and a copy of the rental agreement if it leases or
subleases the premises;
(d) A statement of the applicant's previous history, record,
and association that is sufficient to establish that the applicant
is a charitable organization, and a copy of a determination letter
that is issued by the Internal Revenue Service and states that the
organization is tax exempt under subsection 501(a) and described
in subsection 501(c)(3), 501(c)(4), 501(c)(7), 501(c)(8),
501(c)(10), or 501(c)(19) of the Internal Revenue Code;
(e) A statement as to whether the applicant has ever had any
previous application refused, whether it previously has had a
license revoked or suspended, and the reason stated by the
attorney general for the refusal, revocation, or suspension;
(f) A statement of the charitable purposes for which the net
profit derived from bingo, other than instant bingo, will be used,
and a statement of how the net profit derived from instant bingo
will be distributed in accordance with section 2915.101 of the
Revised Code;
(g) Other necessary and reasonable information that the
attorney general may require by rule adopted pursuant to section
111.15 of the Revised Code;
(h) If the applicant is a charitable trust as defined in
section 109.23 of the Revised Code, a statement as to whether it
has registered with the attorney general pursuant to section
109.26 of the Revised Code or filed annual reports pursuant to
section 109.31 of the Revised Code, and, if it is not required to
do either, the exemption in section 109.26 or 109.31 of the
Revised Code that applies to it;
(i) If the applicant is a charitable organization as defined
in section 1716.01 of the Revised Code, a statement as to whether
it has filed with the attorney general a registration statement
pursuant to section 1716.02 of the Revised Code and a financial
report pursuant to section 1716.04 of the Revised Code, and, if it
is not required to do both, the exemption in section 1716.03 of
the Revised Code that applies to it;
(j) In the case of an applicant seeking to qualify as a youth
athletic park organization, a statement issued by a board or body
vested with authority under Chapter 755. of the Revised Code for
the supervision and maintenance of recreation facilities in the
territory in which the organization is located, certifying that
the playing fields owned by the organization were used for at
least one hundred days during the year in which the statement is
issued, and were open for use to all residents of that territory,
regardless of race, color, creed, religion, sex, or national
origin, for athletic activities by youth athletic organizations
that do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, creed,
religion, sex, or national origin, and that the fields were not
used for any profit-making activity at any time during the year.
That type of board or body is authorized to issue the statement
upon request and shall issue the statement if it finds that the
applicant's playing fields were so used.
(3) The attorney general, within thirty days after receiving
a timely filed application from a charitable organization that has
been issued a license under this section that has not expired and
has not been revoked or suspended, shall send a temporary permit
to the applicant specifying the date on which the application was
filed with the attorney general and stating that, pursuant to
section 119.06 of the Revised Code, the applicant may continue to
conduct bingo until a new license is granted or, if the
application is rejected, until fifteen days after notice of the
rejection is mailed to the applicant. The temporary permit does
not affect the validity of the applicant's application and does
not grant any rights to the applicant except those rights
specifically granted in section 119.06 of the Revised Code. The
issuance of a temporary permit by the attorney general pursuant to
this division does not prohibit the attorney general from
rejecting the applicant's application because of acts that the
applicant committed, or actions that the applicant failed to take,
before or after the issuance of the temporary permit.
(4) Within thirty days after receiving an initial license
application from a charitable organization to conduct bingo,
instant bingo at a bingo session, or instant bingo other than at a
bingo session, the attorney general shall conduct a preliminary
review of the application and notify the applicant regarding any
deficiencies. Once an application is deemed complete, or beginning
on the thirtieth day after the application is filed, if the
attorney general failed to notify the applicant of any
deficiencies, the attorney general shall have an additional sixty
days to conduct an investigation and either grant or deny the
application based on findings established and communicated in
accordance with divisions (B) and (E) of this section. As an
option to granting or denying an initial license application, the
attorney general may grant a temporary license and request
additional time to conduct the investigation if the attorney
general has cause to believe that additional time is necessary to
complete the investigation and has notified the applicant in
writing about the specific concerns raised during the
investigation.
(B)(1) The attorney general shall adopt rules to enforce
sections 2915.01, 2915.02, and 2915.07 to 2915.13 of the Revised
Code to ensure that bingo or instant bingo is conducted in
accordance with those sections and to maintain proper control over
the conduct of bingo or instant bingo. The rules, except rules
adopted pursuant to divisions (A)(2)(g) and (G) of this section,
shall be adopted pursuant to Chapter 119. of the Revised Code. The
attorney general shall license charitable organizations to conduct
bingo, instant bingo at a bingo session, or instant bingo other
than at a bingo session in conformance with this chapter and with
the licensing provisions of Chapter 119. of the Revised Code.
(2) The attorney general may refuse to grant a license to any
organization, or revoke or suspend the license of any
organization, that does any of the following or to which any of
the following applies:
(a) 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;
(b) Makes or has made an incorrect or false statement that is
material to the granting of the license in an application filed
pursuant to division (A) of this section;
(c) Submits or has submitted any incorrect or false
information relating to an application if the information is
material to the granting of the license;
(d) Maintains or has maintained any incorrect or false
information that is material to the granting of the license in the
records required to be kept pursuant to divisions (A) and (C) of
section 2915.10 of the Revised Code, if applicable;
(e) 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 or
with any rule adopted by the attorney general pursuant to this
section.
(3) For the purposes of division (B) of this section, any
action of an officer, trustee, agent, representative, or bingo
game operator of an organization is an action of the organization.
(C) The attorney general may grant licenses to charitable
organizations that are branches, lodges, or chapters of national
charitable organizations.
(D) The attorney general shall send notice in writing to the
prosecuting attorney and sheriff of the county in which the
organization will conduct bingo, instant bingo at a bingo session,
or instant bingo other than at a bingo session, as stated in its
application for a license or amended license, and to any other law
enforcement agency in that county that so requests, of all of the
following:
(1) The issuance of the license;
(2) The issuance of the amended license;
(3) The rejection of an application for and refusal to grant
a license;
(4) The revocation of any license previously issued;
(5) The suspension of any license previously issued.
(E) A license 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 days of the
week and the times on each of those days when bingo will be
conducted. If the attorney general refuses to grant or revokes or
suspends a license, 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 license. 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 license shall not be enjoined during the pendency of
the action.
(F) A charitable organization that has been issued a license
pursuant to division (B) of this section but that cannot conduct
bingo or instant bingo at the location, or on the day of the week
or at the time, specified on the license due to circumstances that
make it impractical to do so may apply in writing, together with
an application fee of two hundred fifty dollars, to the attorney
general, at least thirty days prior to a change in location, day
of the week, or time, and request an amended license. The
application shall describe the causes making it impractical for
the organization to conduct bingo or instant bingo in conformity
with its license and shall indicate the location, days of the
week, and times on each of those days when it desires to conduct
bingo or instant bingo. Except as otherwise provided in this
division, the attorney general shall issue the amended license in
accordance with division (E) of this section, and the organization
shall surrender its original license to the attorney general. The
attorney general may refuse to grant an amended license according
to the terms of division (B) of this section.
(G) The attorney general, by rule adopted pursuant to section
111.15 of the Revised Code, shall establish a schedule of reduced
license fees for charitable organizations that desire to conduct
bingo or instant bingo during fewer than twenty-six weeks in any
calendar year.
(H) The attorney general, by rule adopted pursuant to section
111.15 of the Revised Code, shall establish license fees for the
conduct of bingo, instant bingo at a bingo session, or instant
bingo other than at a bingo session for charitable organizations
that prior to the effective date of this amendment July 1, 2003,
have not been licensed to conduct bingo, instant bingo at a bingo
session, or instant bingo other than at a bingo session under this
chapter.
(I) The attorney general may enter into a written contract
with any other state agency to delegate to that state agency the
powers prescribed to the attorney general under Chapter 2915. of
the Revised Code.
(J) The attorney general, by rule adopted pursuant to section
111.15 of the Revised Code, may adopt rules to determine the
requirements for 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 to be in good
standing in the state.
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, or from the landlord of a premises where bingo is
conducted, 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. No charitable organization is required to pay property
taxes or assessments on premises that the charitable organization
leases from another person to conduct bingo. 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 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. 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 three charitable organizations per calendar
week for conducting bingo sessions on the premises. In no case
shall more than nine 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 three 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 three bingo
sessions in a seven-day period after notifying the attorney
general when it will conduct the sessions.
(5) Pay out more than six thousand 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 circumstances make it impractical for the charitable
organization 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 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;
(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. 3772.01. As used in this chapter:
(A) "Applicant" means any person who applies to the
commission for a license under this chapter.
(B) "Casino control commission fund" means the casino control
commission fund described in Section 6(C)(3)(d) of Article XV,
Ohio Constitution, the money in which shall be used to fund the
commission and its related affairs.
(C) "Casino facility" means a casino facility as defined in
Section 6(C)(9) of Article XV, Ohio Constitution.
(D) "Casino gaming" means any type of slot machine or table
game wagering, using money, casino credit, or any representative
of value, authorized in any of the states of Indiana, Michigan,
Pennsylvania, and West Virginia as of January 1, 2009, and
includes slot machine and table game wagering subsequently
authorized by, but shall not be limited by, subsequent
restrictions placed on such wagering in such states. "Casino
gaming" does not include bingo, as authorized in Section 6 of
Article XV, Ohio Constitution and conducted as of January 1, 2009,
or horse racing where the pari-mutuel system of wagering is
conducted, as authorized under the laws of this state as of
January 1, 2009.
(E) "Casino gaming employee" means any employee of a casino
operator or management company, but not a key employee, and as
further defined in section 3772.131 of the Revised Code.
(F) "Casino operator" means any person, trust, corporation,
partnership, limited partnership, association, limited liability
company, or other business enterprise that directly or indirectly
holds an ownership or leasehold interest in a casino facility.
"Casino operator" does not include an agency of the state, any
political subdivision of the state, any person, trust,
corporation, partnership, limited partnership, association,
limited liability company, or other business enterprise that may
have an interest in a casino facility, but who is legally or
contractually restricted from conducting casino gaming.
(G) "Central system" means a computer system that provides
the following functions related to casino gaming equipment used in
connection with casino gaming authorized under this chapter:
security, auditing, data and information retrieval, and other
purposes deemed necessary and authorized by the commission.
(H) "Commission" means the Ohio casino control commission.
(I) "Conduct" means to back, promote, organize, manage, carry
on, sponsor, or prepare for the operation of casino gaming,
skill-based amusement machine operations, or sweepstakes terminal
device operations.
(J) "Gaming agent" means a peace officer employed by the
commission that is vested with duties to enforce this chapter and
conduct other investigations into the conduct of the casino gaming
and the maintenance of the equipment that the commission considers
necessary and proper and is in compliance with section 109.77 of
the Revised Code.
(J)(K) "Gaming-related vendor" means any individual,
partnership, corporation, association, trust, or any other group
of individuals, however organized, who supplies gaming-related
equipment, goods, or services to a casino operator or management
company, that are directly related to or affect casino gaming
authorized under this chapter, including, but not limited to, the
manufacture, sale, distribution, or repair of slot machines and
table game equipment.
(K)(L) "Holding company" means any corporation, firm,
partnership, limited partnership, limited liability company,
trust, or other form of business organization not a natural person
which directly or indirectly owns, has the power or right to
control, or holds with power to vote, any part of an applicant,
casino operator, management company, or gaming-related vendor
license.
(L)(M) "Initial investment" includes costs related to
demolition, engineering, architecture, design, site preparation,
construction, infrastructure improvements, land acquisition,
fixtures and equipment, insurance related to construction, and
leasehold improvements.
(M)(N) "Institutional investor" means any of the following
entities owning one per cent or less, or a percentage between one
and ten per cent as approved by the commission through a waiver on
a case-by-case basis, ownership interest in a casino facility,
casino operator, management company, or holding company: a
corporation, bank, insurance company, pension fund or pension fund
trust, retirement fund, including funds administered by a public
agency, employees' profit-sharing fund or employees'
profit-sharing trust, any association engaged, as a substantial
part of its business or operations, in purchasing or holding
securities, or any trust in respect of which a bank is trustee or
cotrustee, investment company registered under the "Investment
Company Act of 1940," 15 U.S.C. 80a-1 et seq., collective
investment trust organized by banks under Part Nine of the Rules
of the Comptroller of the Currency, closed-end investment trust,
chartered or licensed life insurance company or property and
casualty insurance company, investment advisor registered under
the "Investment Advisors Act of 1940," 15 U.S.C. 80 b-1 et seq.,
and such other persons as the commission may reasonably determine
to qualify as an institutional investor for reasons consistent
with this chapter.
(N)(O) "Key employee" means any executive, employee, or agent
of a casino operator or management company licensee having the
power to exercise significant influence over decisions concerning
any part of the operation of such licensee, including:
(1) An officer, director, trustee, or partner of a person
that has applied for or holds a casino operator, management
company, or gaming-related vendor license or of a holding company
that has control of a person that has applied for or holds a
casino operator, management company, or gaming-related vendor
license;
(2) A person that holds a direct or indirect ownership
interest of more than one per cent in a person that has applied
for or holds a casino operator, management company, or
gaming-related vendor license or holding company that has control
of a person that has applied for or holds a casino operator,
management company, or gaming-related vendor license;
(3) A managerial employee of a person that has applied for or
holds a casino operator or gaming-related vendor license in Ohio,
or a managerial employee of a holding company that has control of
a person that has applied for or holds a casino operator or
gaming-related vendor license in Ohio, who performs the function
of principal executive officer, principal operating officer,
principal accounting officer, or an equivalent officer or other
person the commission determines to have the power to exercise
significant influence over decisions concerning any part of the
operation of such licensee.
The commission shall determine whether an individual whose
duties or status varies from those described in this division also
is considered a key employee.
(O)(P) "Licensed casino operator" means a casino operator
that has been issued a license by the commission and that has been
certified annually by the commission to have paid all applicable
fees, taxes, and debts to the state.
(P)(Q) "Majority ownership interest" in a license or in a
casino facility, as the case may be, means ownership of more than
fifty per cent of such license or casino facility, as the case may
be. For purposes of the foregoing, whether a majority ownership
interest is held in a license or in a casino facility, as the case
may be, shall be determined under the rules for constructive
ownership of stock provided in Treas. Reg. 1.409A-3(i)(5)(iii) as
in effect on January 1, 2009.
(Q)(R) "Management company" means an organization retained by
a casino operator to manage a casino facility and provide services
such as accounting, general administration, maintenance,
recruitment, and other operational services.
(R)(S) "Ohio law enforcement training fund" means the state
law enforcement training fund described in Section 6(C)(3)(f) of
Article XV, Ohio Constitution, the money in which shall be used to
enhance public safety by providing additional training
opportunities to the law enforcement community.
(S)(T) "Person" includes, but is not limited to, an
individual or a combination of individuals; a sole proprietorship,
a firm, a company, a joint venture, a partnership of any type, a
joint-stock company, a corporation of any type, a corporate
subsidiary of any type, a limited liability company, a business
trust, or any other business entity or organization; an assignee;
a receiver; a trustee in bankruptcy; an unincorporated
association, club, society, or other unincorporated entity or
organization; entities that are disregarded for federal income tax
purposes; and any other nongovernmental, artificial, legal entity
that is capable of engaging in business.
(T)(U) "Problem casino gambling and addictions fund" means
the state problem gambling and addictions fund described in
Section 6(C)(3)(g) of Article XV, Ohio Constitution, the money in
which shall be used for treatment of problem gambling and
substance abuse, and for related research.
(U)(V) "Skill-based amusement machine" has the same meaning
as in Chapter 2915. of the Revised Code.
(W) "Skill-based amusement machine distributor" means any
person who purchases or obtains skill-based amusement machines and
who does any of the following:
(1) Sells, offers for sale, leases, or otherwise provides or
offers to provide skill-based amusement machines to another person
for use in this state;
(2) Modifies, converts, adds to, or removes parts from
skill-based amusement machines to further their promotion or sale
for use in this state; or
(3) Assembles completed skill-based amusement machines from
raw materials, other items, or subparts.
(X) "Skill-based amusement machine operator" means a person
that provides skill-based amusement machines to a player or
participant.
(Y) "Slot machine" means any mechanical, electrical, or other
device or machine which, upon insertion of a coin, token, ticket,
or similar object, or upon payment of any consideration, is
available to play or operate, the play or operation of which,
whether by reason of the skill of the operator or application of
the element of chance, or both, makes individual prize
determinations for individual participants in cash, premiums,
merchandise, tokens, or any thing of value, whether the payoff is
made automatically from the machine or in any other manner.
(V)(Z) "Sweepstakes terminal device" has the same meaning as
in Chapter 2915. of the Revised Code.
(AA) "Sweepstakes terminal device distributor" means any
person who purchases or obtains sweepstakes terminal devices and
who does any of the following:
(1) Sells, offers for sale, leases, or otherwise provides or
offers to provide sweepstakes terminal devices to another person
for use in this state;
(2) Modifies, converts, adds to, or removes parts from
sweepstakes terminal devices to further their promotion or sale
for use in this state; or
(3) Assembles completed sweepstakes terminal devices from raw
materials, other items, or subparts.
(BB) "Sweepstakes terminal device operator" means a person
that provides sweepstakes terminal devices to a sweepstakes
entrant.
(CC) "Table game" means any game played with cards, dice, or
any mechanical, electromechanical, or electronic device or machine
for money, casino credit, or any representative of value. "Table
game" does not include slot machines.
(W)(DD) "Upfront license" means the first plenary license
issued to a casino operator.
(X)(EE) "Voluntary exclusion program" means a program
provided by the commission that allows persons to voluntarily
exclude themselves from the gaming areas of facilities under the
jurisdiction of the commission by placing their name on a
voluntary exclusion list and following the procedures set forth by
the commission.
Sec. 3772.02. (A) There is hereby created the Ohio casino
control commission described in Section 6(C)(1) of Article XV,
Ohio Constitution.
(B) The commission shall consist of seven members appointed
within one month of the effective date of this section September
10, 2010, by the governor with the advice and consent of the
senate. The governor shall forward all appointments to the senate
within twenty-four hours.
(1) Each commission member is eligible for reappointment at
the discretion of the governor. No commission member shall be
appointed for more than three terms in total.
(2) Each commission member shall be a resident of Ohio.
(3) At least one commission member shall be experienced in
law enforcement and criminal investigation.
(4) At least one commission member shall be a certified
public accountant experienced in accounting and auditing.
(5) At least one commission member shall be an attorney
admitted to the practice of law in Ohio.
(6) At least one commission member shall be a resident of a
county where one of the casino facilities is located.
(7) Not more than four commission members shall be of the
same political party.
(8) No commission member shall have any affiliation with an
Ohio casino operator or facility.
(C) Commission members shall serve four-year terms, except
that when the governor makes initial appointments to the
commission under this chapter, the governor shall appoint three
members to serve four-year terms with not more than two such
members from the same political party, two members to serve
three-year terms with such members not being from the same
political party, and two members to serve two-year terms with such
members not being from the same political party.
(D) Each commission member shall hold office from the date of
appointment until the end of the term for which the member was
appointed. Any member appointed to fill a vacancy occurring before
the expiration of the term for which the member's predecessor was
appointed shall hold office for the remainder of the unexpired
term. Any member shall continue in office after the expiration
date of the member's term until the member's successor takes
office, or until a period of sixty days has elapsed, whichever
occurs first. A vacancy in the commission membership shall be
filled in the same manner as the original appointment.
(E) The governor shall select one member to serve as
chairperson and the commission members shall select one member
from a different party than the chairperson to serve as
vice-chairperson. The governor may remove and replace the
chairperson at any time. No such member shall serve as chairperson
for more than six successive years. The vice-chairperson shall
assume the duties of the chairperson in the absence of the
chairperson. The chairperson and vice-chairperson shall perform
but shall not be limited to additional duties as are prescribed by
commission rule.
(F) A commission member is not required to devote the
member's full time to membership on the commission. Each member of
the commission shall receive compensation of sixty thousand
dollars per year, payable in monthly installments for the first
four years of the commission's existence. Each member shall
receive the member's actual and necessary expenses incurred in the
discharge of the member's official duties.
(G) The governor shall not appoint an individual to the
commission, and an individual shall not serve on the commission,
if the individual has been convicted of or pleaded guilty or no
contest to a disqualifying offense as defined in section 3772.07
of the Revised Code. Members coming under indictment or bill of
information of a disqualifying offense shall resign from the
commission immediately upon indictment.
(H) At least five commission members shall be present for the
commission to meet. The concurrence of four members is necessary
for the commission to take any action. All members shall vote on
the adoption of rules, and the approval of, and the suspension or
revocation of, the licenses of casino operators or management
companies issued under this chapter, unless a member has a written
leave of absence filed with and approved by the chairperson.
(I) A commission member may be removed or suspended from
office in accordance with section 3.04 of the Revised Code.
(J) Each commission member, before entering upon the
discharge of the member's official duties, shall make an oath to
uphold the Ohio Constitution and laws of the state of Ohio and
shall give a bond, payable by the commission, to the treasurer of
state, in the sum of ten thousand dollars with sufficient sureties
to be approved by the treasurer of state, which bond shall be
filed with the secretary of state.
(K) The commission shall hold one regular meeting each month
and shall convene other meetings at the request of the chairperson
or a majority of the members. A member who fails to attend at
least three-fifths of the regular and special meetings of the
commission during any two-year period forfeits membership on the
commission. All meetings of the commission shall be open meetings
under section 121.22 of the Revised Code except as otherwise
allowed by law.
Sec. 3772.03. (A) To ensure the integrity of casino gaming,
the commission shall have authority to complete the functions of
licensing, regulating, investigating, and penalizing casino
operators, management companies, holding companies, key employees,
casino gaming employees, and gaming-related vendors. The
commission also shall have jurisdiction over all persons
participating in casino gaming authorized by Section 6(C) of
Article XV, Ohio Constitution, and this chapter.
(B) To ensure the integrity of skill-based amusement machines
and sweepstakes terminal devices, the commission shall have the
authority to complete the functions of licensing, regulating,
investigating, and penalizing skill-based amusement machine
distributors and operators and sweepstakes terminal device
distributors and operators.
(C) All rules adopted by the commission under this chapter
shall be adopted under procedures established in Chapter 119. of
the Revised Code. The commission may contract for the services of
experts and consultants to assist the commission in carrying out
its duties under this section.
(C)(D) Within six nine months of the effective date of this
section
September 10, 2010, the commission shall adopt initial
rules as are necessary for completing the functions stated in
division divisions (A) and (B) of this section and for addressing
the subjects enumerated in division (D)(E) of this section.
(D)(E) The commission shall adopt, and as advisable and
necessary shall amend or repeal, rules that include all of the
following:
(1) The prevention of practices detrimental to the public
interest;
(2) Prescribing the method of applying, and the form of
application, that an applicant for a license under this chapter
must follow as otherwise described in this chapter;
(3) Prescribing the information to be furnished by an
applicant or licensee as described in section 3772.11 of the
Revised Code this chapter;
(4) Describing the certification standards and duties of the
following: an independent testing laboratory certified under
section 3772.31 of the Revised Code and the relationship between
the commission, the laboratory, the gaming-related vendor, and the
casino operator; a skill-based amusement machine distributor; a
skill-based amusement machine operator; a sweepstakes terminal
device distributor; and a sweepstakes terminal device operator;
(5) The minimum amount of insurance that must be maintained
by a casino operator, management company, holding company, or
gaming-related vendor, skill-based amusement machine distributor,
skill-based amusement machine operator, sweepstakes terminal
device distributor, or sweepstakes terminal device operator;
(6) The approval process for a significant change in
ownership or transfer of control of a licensee as provided in
section 3772.091 of the Revised Code;
(7) The design of gaming supplies, devices, and equipment to
be distributed by gaming-related vendors, skill-based amusement
machine distributors, skill-based amusement machine operators,
sweepstakes terminal device distributors, and sweepstakes terminal
device operators;
(8) Identifying For all casino gaming, skill-based amusement
machine gaming, and sweepstakes terminal device gaming that is
licensed by the commission:
(a) Identifying the casino gaming that is permitted,
identifying;
(b) Identifying the gaming supplies, devices, and equipment,
that are permitted, defining;
(c) Defining the area in which the permitted casino gaming
may be conducted, and specifying;
(d) Specifying the method of operation according to which the
permitted casino gaming is to be conducted as provided in section
3772.20 of the Revised Code, and requiring this chapter;
(e) Requiring gaming devices and equipment to meet the
standards of this state;
(9) Tournament play in any casino facility;
(10) Establishing and implementing a voluntary exclusion
program that provides all of the following:
(a) Except as provided by commission rule, a person who
participates in the program shall agree to refrain from entering a
casino facility.
(b) The name of a person participating in the program shall
be included on a list of persons excluded from all casino
facilities.
(c) Except as provided by commission rule, no person who
participates in the program shall petition the commission for
admittance into a casino facility.
(d) The list of persons participating in the program and the
personal information of those persons shall be confidential and
shall only be disseminated by the commission to a casino operator
and the agents and employees of the casino operator for purposes
of enforcement and to other entities, upon request of the
participant and agreement by the commission.
(e) A casino operator shall make all reasonable attempts as
determined by the commission to cease all direct marketing efforts
to a person participating in the program.
(f) A casino operator shall not cash the check of a person
participating in the program or extend credit to the person in any
manner. However, the program shall not exclude a casino operator
from seeking the payment of a debt accrued by a person before
participating in the program.
(g) Any and all locations at which a person may register as a
participant in the program shall be published.
(11) Requiring the commission to adopt standards regarding
the marketing materials of a licensed casino operator, a
skill-based amusement machine distributor, a skill-based amusement
machine operator, a sweepstakes terminal device distributor, and a
sweepstakes terminal device operator, including allowing the
commission to prohibit marketing materials that are contrary to
the adopted standards;
(12) Requiring that the records, including financial
statements, of any casino operator, management company, holding
company, and gaming-related vendor, skill-based amusement machine
distributor, skill-based amusement machine operator, sweepstakes
terminal device distributor, and sweepstakes terminal device
operator be maintained in the manner prescribed by the commission
and made available for inspection upon demand by the commission,
but shall be subject to section 3772.16 of the Revised Code;
(13) Permitting a licensed casino operator, management
company, key employee, or casino gaming employee, skill-based
amusement machine distributor, skill-based amusement machine
operator, sweepstakes terminal device distributor, or sweepstakes
terminal device operator to question a person suspected of
violating this chapter;
(14) The chips, tokens, tickets, electronic cards, or similar
objects that may be purchased by means of an agreement under which
credit is extended to a wagerer by a casino operator;
(15) Establishing standards for provisional key employee
licenses for a person who is required to be licensed as a key
employee and is in exigent circumstances and standards for
provisional licenses for casino gaming employees who submit
complete applications and are compliant under an instant
background check. A provisional license shall be valid not longer
than three months. A provisional license may be renewed one time,
at the commission's discretion, for an additional three months. In
establishing standards with regard to instant background checks
the commission shall take notice of criminal records checks as
they are conducted under section 311.41 of the Revised Code using
electronic fingerprint reading devices.
(16) Establishing approval procedures for third-party
engineering or accounting firms, as described in section 3772.09
of the Revised Code;
(17) Prescribing the manner in which winnings, compensation
from casino gaming, and gross revenue must be computed and
reported by a licensee as described in Chapter 5753. of the
Revised Code;
(18) Prescribing the manner in which winnings or compensation
from skill-based amusement devices or sweepstakes terminal devices
must be computed and reported by a licensee under this chapter;
(19) Prescribing conditions under which a licensee's license
may be suspended or revoked as described in section 3772.04 of the
Revised Code;
(19)(20) Prescribing the manner and procedure of all hearings
to be conducted by the commission or by any hearing examiner;
(20)(21) Prescribing technical standards and requirements
that are to be met by security and surveillance equipment that is
used at and standards and requirements to be met by personnel who
are employed at casino facilities and skill-based amusement
machine operator's and sweepstakes terminal device operator's
facilities, and standards and requirements for the provision of
security at and surveillance of casino facilities and skill-based
amusement machine operator's and sweepstakes terminal device
operator's facilities;
(21)(22) Prescribing requirements for a casino operator to
provide unarmed security services at a casino facility by licensed
casino employees, and the training that shall be completed by
these employees;
(22)(23) Prescribing standards according to which casino
operators shall keep accounts and standards according to which
casino accounts shall be audited, and establish means of assisting
the tax commissioner in levying and collecting the gross casino
revenue tax levied under section 5753.02 of the Revised Code;
(23)(24) Prescribing standards under which skill-based
amusement machine distributors, skill-based amusement machine
operators, sweepstakes terminal device distributors, and
sweepstakes terminal device operators shall keep accounts,
standards to audit such accounts and establishing means to assist
the tax commissioner in levying and collecting all applicable
taxes;
(25) Defining penalties for violation of commission rules and
a process for imposing such penalties subject to the review of the
joint committee on gaming and wagering;
(24)(26) Establishing standards for decertifying contractors
that violate statutes or rules of this state or the federal
government;
(25)(27) Establishing standards for the repair of casino
gaming equipment, skill-based amusement machines, and sweepstakes
terminal devices;
(26)(28) Establishing procedures to ensure that casino
operators, management companies, and holding companies are
compliant with the compulsive and problem gambling plan submitted
under section 3772.18 of the Revised Code;
(27)(29) Providing for any other thing necessary and proper
for successful and efficient regulation of casino gaming,
skill-based amusement machines, and sweepstakes terminal devices
under this chapter.
(E)(F) The commission shall employ and assign gaming agents
as necessary to assist the commission in carrying out the duties
of this chapter. In order to maintain employment as a gaming
agent, the gaming agent shall successfully complete all continuing
training programs required by the commission and shall not have
been convicted of or pleaded guilty or no contest to a
disqualifying offense as defined in section 3772.07 of the Revised
Code.
(F)(G) The commission and its gaming agents shall have
authority with regard to the detection and investigation of, the
seizure of evidence allegedly relating to, and the apprehension
and arrest of persons allegedly committing gaming offenses, and
shall have access to casino all licensed facilities to carry out
the requirements of this chapter.
(G)(H) The commission may eject or exclude or authorize the
ejection or exclusion of and a gaming agent may eject a person
from a casino facility, a skill-based amusement machine facility,
and a sweepstakes terminal device facility for any of the
following reasons:
(1) The person's name is on the list of persons voluntarily
excluding themselves from all casinos in a program established
according to rules adopted by the commission;
(2) The person violates or conspires to violate this chapter
or a rule adopted thereunder; or
(3) The commission determines that the person's conduct or
reputation is such that the person's presence within such a casino
facility may call into question the honesty and integrity of the
casino licensed gaming operations or interfere with the orderly
conduct of the casino licensed gaming operations.
(H)(I) A person, other than a person participating in a
voluntary exclusion program, may petition the commission for a
public hearing on the person's ejection or exclusion under this
chapter.
(I)(J) A casino operator or management company shall have the
same authority to eject or exclude a person from the management
company's casino facilities as authorized in division (G) of this
section. The licensee shall immediately notify the commission of
an ejection or exclusion.
(J)(K) The commission shall submit a written annual report
with the governor, president and minority leader of the senate,
speaker and minority leader of the house of representatives, and
joint committee on gaming and wagering before the first day of
September each year. The annual report shall include a statement
describing the receipts and disbursements of the commission,
relevant financial data regarding casino gaming, including gross
revenues and disbursements made under this chapter, actions taken
by the commission, an update on casino operators', management
companies', and holding companies' compulsive and problem gambling
plans and the voluntary exclusion program and list, and any
additional information that the commission considers useful or
that the governor, president or minority leader of the senate,
speaker or minority leader of the house of representatives, or
joint committee on gaming and wagering requests.
(K)(L) Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, beginning on
July 1, 2011, the commission shall assume jurisdiction over and
oversee the regulation of skill-based amusement machines and
sweepstakes terminal devices as is provided in the law of this
state.
Sec. 3772.032. (A) The permanent joint committee on gaming
and wagering is established. The committee consists of six
members. The speaker of the house of representatives shall appoint
to the committee three members of the house of representatives and
the president of the senate shall appoint to the committee three
members of the senate. Not more than two members appointed from
each chamber may be members of the same political party. The
chairperson shall be from the opposite party as the chairperson of
the joint committee on agency rule review. If the chairperson is
to be from the house of representatives, the speaker of the house
of representatives shall designate a member as the chairperson and
the president of the senate shall designate a member as the
vice-chairperson. If the chairperson is to be from the senate, the
president of the senate shall designate a member as the
chairperson and the speaker of the house of representatives shall
designate a member as the vice-chairperson.
(1) Review all constitutional amendments, laws, and rules
governing the operation and administration of casino licensed
gaming and all authorized gaming and wagering and regulated gaming
activities and recommend to the general assembly and commission
any changes it may find desirable with respect to the language,
structure, and organization of those amendments, laws, or rules;
(2) Make an annual report to the governor and to the general
assembly with respect of the operation and administration of
casino licensed gaming;
(3) Review all changes of fees and penalties as provided in
this chapter and rules adopted thereunder; and
(4) Study all proposed changes to the constitution and laws
of this state and to the rules adopted by the commission governing
the operation and administration of casino licensed gaming, and
report to the general assembly on their adequacy and desirability
as a matter of public policy.
(C) Any study, or any expense incurred, in furtherance of the
committee's objectives shall be paid for from, or out of, the
casino control commission fund or other appropriation provided by
law. The members shall receive no additional compensation, but
shall be reimbursed for actual and necessary expenses incurred in
the performance of their official duties.
Sec. 3772.033. In carrying out the responsibilities vested in
the commission by this chapter, the commission may do all the
following and may designate any such responsibilities to the
executive director, to the commission's employees, or to the
gaming agents:
(A) Inspect and examine all premises where casino licensed
gaming is conducted under this chapter or where gaming supplies,
devices, or equipment are manufactured, sold, or distributed;
(B) Inspect all gaming supplies, devices, and equipment in or
about a casino licensed facility;
(C) Summarily impound and seize and remove from the casino
licensed facility premises gaming supplies, devices, and equipment
for the purpose of examination and inspection;
(D) Determine any facts, or any conditions, practices, or
other matters, as the commission considers necessary or proper to
aid in the enforcement of this chapter or of a rule adopted
thereunder;
(E) Audit licensed gaming operations, including those that
have ceased operation;
(F) Investigate, for the purpose of prosecution, any
suspected violation of this chapter or rules adopted thereunder;
(G) Investigate as appropriate to aid the commission and to
seek the executive director's advice in adopting rules;
(H) Secure information as is necessary to provide a basis for
recommending legislation for the improvement of this chapter;
(I) Make, execute, and otherwise effectuate all contracts and
other agreements, including contracts for necessary purchases of
goods and services. Except for any contract entered into with
independent testing laboratories under section 3772.31 of the
Revised Code, the commission shall ensure use of Ohio products or
services in compliance with sections 125.09 and 125.11 of the
Revised Code and all rules adopted thereunder.
(J) Employ the services of persons the commission considers
necessary for the purposes of consultation or investigation, and
fix the salaries of, or contract for the services of, legal, with
the consent of the attorney general, accounting, technical,
operational, and other personnel and consultants;. The attorney
general shall serve as the chief legal representative for the
commission. Under section 109.07 of the Revised Code, the attorney
general may appoint special counsel to assist in representation of
the commission.
(K) Secure, by agreement, information and services as the
commission considers necessary from any state agency or other unit
of state government;
(L) Acquire furnishings, equipment, supplies, stationery,
books, and all other things the commission considers necessary or
desirable to successfully and efficiently carry out the
commission's duties and functions; and
(M) Take any other necessary and reasonable action to
determine if a violation of any provision of sections 2915.01 to
2915.13 and Chapter 3772. of the Revised Code has occurred;
(N) Perform all other things the commission considers
necessary to effectuate the intents and purposes of this chapter.
This section shall not prohibit the commission from imposing
administrative discipline, including fines and suspension or
revocation of licenses, on licensees under this chapter if the
licensee is found to be in violation of the commission's rules.
Sec. 3772.04. (A)(1) If, as the result of an investigation,
the commission concludes that a license or finding required by
this chapter should be limited, conditioned, or restricted, or
suspended or revoked, the commission shall conduct an adjudication
under Chapter 119. of the Revised Code.
(2) The commission shall appoint a hearing examiner to
conduct the hearing in the adjudication. A party to the
adjudication may file written objections to the hearing examiner's
report and recommendations not later than the thirtieth day after
they are served upon the party or the party's attorney or other
representative of record. The commission shall not take up the
hearing examiner's report and recommendations earlier than the
thirtieth day after the hearing examiner's report and
recommendations were submitted to the commission.
(3) If the commission finds that a person has violated this
chapter or Chapter 2915. of the Revised Code or a rule adopted
thereunder, the commission may issue an order:
(a) Limiting, conditioning, or restricting, or suspending or
revoking, a license issued under this chapter;
(b) Limiting, conditioning, or restricting, or suspending or
revoking, a finding made under this chapter;
(c) Requiring a casino facility to exclude a licensee from
the casino facility or requiring a casino facility not to pay to
the licensee any remuneration for services or any share of
profits, income, or accruals on the licensee's investment in the
casino facility; or
(d) Fining a licensee or other person according to the
penalties adopted by the commission.
(4) An order may be judicially reviewed under section 119.12
of the Revised Code.
(B) For the purpose of conducting any study or investigation,
the commission may direct that public hearings be held at a time
and place, prescribed by the commission, in accordance with
section 121.22 of the Revised Code. The commission shall give
notice of all public hearings in such manner as will give actual
notice to all interested parties.
(C) In the discharge of any duties imposed by this chapter,
the commission may require that testimony be given under oath and
administer such oath, issue subpoenas compelling the attendance of
witnesses and the production of any papers, books, and accounts,
and cause the deposition of any witness. In the event of the
refusal of any person without good cause to comply with the terms
of a subpoena issued by the commission or refusal to testify on
matters about which the person may lawfully be questioned, the
prosecuting attorney of the county in which such person resides,
upon the petition of the commission, may bring a proceeding for
contempt against such person in the court of common pleas of that
county.
(D) When conducting a public hearing, the commission shall
not limit the number of speakers who may testify. However, the
commission may set reasonable time limits on the length of an
individual's testimony or the total amount of time allotted to
proponents and opponents of an issue before the commission.
(E) An administrative law judge appointed by the commission
may conduct a hearing under this chapter and recommend findings of
fact and decisions to the commission.
(F) The commission may rely, in whole or in part, upon
investigations, conclusions, or findings of other casino gaming
commissions or other government regulatory bodies in connection
with licensing, investigations, or other matters relating to an
applicant or licensee under this chapter.
Sec. 3772.06. (A)(1) The commission shall appoint an
executive director who shall serve at the pleasure of the
commission. The executive director is in the unclassified service,
shall devote full time to the duties of the office, and shall hold
no other office or employment. The executive director shall, by
experience and training, possess management skills that equip the
executive director to administer an enterprise of the nature of
the commission. The executive director shall not have a pecuniary
interest in any business organization that holds a license under
this chapter, or that does business with any person licensed under
this chapter. A member of the general assembly, a person who holds
an elective office, or an office holder of a political party is
ineligible to be appointed executive director at the same time as
being such a member or holding such an office. The executive
director shall receive an annual salary in accordance with pay
range 48 of section 124.152 of the Revised Code.
(2) The executive director, before entering upon the
discharge of the executive director's official duties, shall give,
and thereafter shall maintain, bond in the amount of twenty-five
thousand dollars, payable to the state, conditioned upon the
executive director's faithful and proper performance of the
executive director's official duties. The bond shall be issued by
a surety authorized to do business in this state and shall be
filed with the secretary of state. The bond may be an individual
bond or a schedule or blanket bond.
(B)(1) The executive director or a deputy designated in
writing by the executive director shall attend all meetings of the
commission and shall act as its secretary. The executive director
shall keep a record of all commission proceedings and shall keep
the commission's records, files, and documents at the commission's
principal office.
(2) The executive director shall be the chief executive
officer and shall be responsible for keeping all commission
records and supervising and administering casino licensed gaming
in accordance with this chapter, and enforcing all commission
rules adopted under this chapter.
(3) The executive director shall hire staff, including an
assistant director or deputy directors, as necessary to assist the
executive director in the executive director's duties under this
chapter. In appointing employees, the executive director is
subject to section 3772.061 of the Revised Code. The executive
director may employ employees as necessary, unless the commission
determines otherwise. Except as otherwise provided in this
chapter, all costs of administration incurred by the executive
director and the executive director's employees shall be paid out
of the casino control commission fund.
(C) A state agency or other unit of state government shall
cooperate with the commission, and shall provide the commission
with information and services the commission considers necessary
to carry out the commission's duties and functions under this
chapter.
(D) The executive director shall confer at least once each
month with the commission, at which time the executive director
shall advise it regarding the operation and administration of the
commission and casino licensed gaming. The executive director
shall make available at the request of the commission all
documents, files, and other records pertaining to the operation
and administration of the commission and casino licensed gaming.
The executive director shall prepare and make available to the
commission each month a complete and accurate accounting of gross
casino gaming revenues and other licensed gaming revenues, and all
other relevant financial information, including an accounting of
all transfers made from the casino control commission fund.
Sec. 3772.07. The following appointing or licensing
authorities shall obtain a criminal records check of the person
who is to be appointed or licensed:
(A) The governor, before appointing an individual as a member
of the commission;
(B) The commission, before appointing an individual as
executive director or a gaming agent;
(C) The commission, before issuing a license for a key
employee or casino gaming employee, and before issuing a license
for each investor, except an institutional investor, for a casino
operator, management company, holding company, or gaming-related
vendor;
(D) The commission, before issuing a license for a
skill-based amusement machine distributor, a skill-based amusement
machine operator, a sweepstakes terminal device distributor, or a
sweepstakes terminal device operator;
(E) The executive director, before appointing an individual
as a professional, technical, or clerical employee of the
commission.
Thereafter, such an appointing or licensing authority shall
obtain a criminal records check of the same individual at
three-year intervals.
The appointing or licensing authority shall provide to each
person of whom a criminal records check is required a copy of the
form and the standard fingerprint impression sheet prescribed
under divisions (C)(1) and (2) of section 109.572 of the Revised
Code. The person shall complete the form and impression sheet and
return them to the appointing or licensing authority. If a person
fails to complete and return the form and impression sheet within
a reasonable time, the person is ineligible to be appointed or
licensed or to continue in the appointment or licensure.
The appointing or licensing authority shall forward the
completed form and impression sheet to the superintendent of the
bureau of criminal identification and investigation. The
appointing or licensing authority shall request the superintendent
also to obtain information from the federal bureau of
investigation, including fingerprint-based checks of the national
crime information databases, and from other states and the federal
government under the national crime prevention and privacy compact
as part of the criminal records check.
The commission shall pay the fee the bureau of criminal
identification and investigation charges for all criminal records
checks conducted under this section. An applicant for a casino
operator, management company, holding company, or gaming-related
vendor, skill-based amusement machine distributor, skill-based
amusement machine operator, sweepstakes terminal device
distributor, or sweepstakes terminal device operator license shall
reimburse the commission for the amount of the fee paid on the
applicant's behalf. An applicant for a key employee or casino
gaming employee license shall reimburse the commission for the
amount of the fee paid on the applicant's behalf, unless the
applicant is applying at the request of a casino operator or
management company, in which case the casino operator or
management company shall reimburse the commission.
The appointing or licensing authority shall review the
results of a criminal records check. An appointee for a commission
member shall forward the results of the criminal records check to
the president of the senate before the senate advises and consents
to the appointment of the commission member. The appointing or
licensing authority shall not appoint or license or retain the
appointment or licensure of a person a criminal records check
discloses has been convicted of or has pleaded guilty or no
contest to a disqualifying offense. A "disqualifying offense"
means any gambling offense, any theft offense, any offense having
an element of fraud or misrepresentation, any offense having an
element of moral turpitude, and any felony not otherwise included
in the foregoing list, except as otherwise provided in section
3772.10 of the Revised Code.
The report of a criminal records check is not a public record
that is open to public inspection and copying. The commission
shall not make the report available to any person other than the
person who was the subject of the criminal records check; an
appointing or licensing authority; a member, the executive
director, or an employee of the commission; or any court or
agency, including a hearing examiner, in a judicial or
administrative proceeding relating to the person's employment with
the entity requesting the criminal records check in which the
criminal records check is relevant.
Sec. 3772.10. (A) In determining whether to grant or maintain
the privilege of a casino operator, management company, holding
company, key employee, casino gaming employee, or gaming-related
vendor license issued under this chapter, the Ohio casino control
commission shall consider all of the following, as applicable:
(1) The reputation, experience, and financial integrity of
the applicant, its holding company, if applicable, and any other
person that directly or indirectly controls the applicant;
(2) The financial ability of the applicant to purchase and
maintain adequate liability and casualty insurance and to provide
an adequate surety bond;
(3) The past and present compliance of the applicant and its
affiliates or affiliated companies with casino-related licensing
requirements in this state or any other jurisdiction, including
whether the applicant has a history of noncompliance with the
casino licensing requirements of any jurisdiction;
(4) If the applicant has been indicted, convicted, pleaded
guilty or no contest, or forfeited bail concerning any criminal
offense under the laws of any jurisdiction, either felony or
misdemeanor, not including traffic violations;
(5) If the applicant has filed, or had filed against it a
proceeding for bankruptcy or has ever been involved in any formal
process to adjust, defer, suspend, or otherwise work out the
payment of any debt;
(6) If the applicant has been served with a complaint or
other notice filed with any public body regarding a payment of any
tax required under federal, state, or local law that has been
delinquent for one or more years;
(7) If the applicant is or has been a defendant in litigation
involving its business practices;
(8) If awarding a license would undermine the public's
confidence in the casino gaming industry in this state;
(9) If the applicant meets other standards for the issuance
of a license that the commission adopts by rule, which shall not
be arbitrary, capricious, or contradictory to the expressed
provisions of this chapter.
(B) All applicants for a license under this chapter shall
establish their suitability for a license by clear and convincing
evidence. If the commission determines that a person is eligible
under this chapter to be issued a license as a casino operator,
management company, holding company, key employee, casino gaming
employee, or gaming-related vendor, the commission shall issue
such license for not more than three years, as determined by
commission rule, if all other requirements of this chapter have
been satisfied.
(C) The commission shall not issue a casino operator,
management company, holding company, key employee, casino gaming
employee, or gaming-related vendor license under this chapter to
an applicant if:
(1) The applicant has been convicted of a disqualifying
offense, as defined in section 3772.07 of the Revised Code.
(2) The applicant has submitted an application for license
under this chapter that contains false information.
(3) The applicant is a commission member.
(4) The applicant owns an ownership interest that is unlawful
under this chapter, unless waived by the commission.
(5) The applicant violates specific rules adopted by the
commission related to denial of licensure.
(6) The applicant is a member of or employed by a gaming
regulatory body of a governmental unit in this state, another
state, or the federal government, or is employed by a governmental
unit of this state. This division does not prohibit a casino
operator from hiring special duty law enforcement officers if the
officers are not specifically involved in gaming-related
regulatory functions.
(7) The commission otherwise determines the applicant is
ineligible for the license.
(D)(1) The commission shall investigate the qualifications of
each applicant under this chapter before any license is issued and
before any finding with regard to acts or transactions for which
commission approval is required is made. The commission shall
continue to observe the conduct of all licensees and all other
persons having a material involvement directly or indirectly with
a casino operator, management company, or holding company licensee
to ensure that licenses are not issued to or held by, or that
there is not any material involvement with a casino operator,
management company, or holding company licensee by, an
unqualified, disqualified, or unsuitable person or a person whose
operations are conducted in an unsuitable manner or in unsuitable
or prohibited places or locations.
(2) The executive director may recommend to the commission
that it deny any application, or limit, condition, or restrict, or
suspend or revoke, any license or finding, or impose any fine upon
any licensee or other person according to this chapter and the
rules adopted thereunder.
(3) A license issued under this chapter is a revocable
privilege. No licensee has a vested right in or under any license
issued under this chapter. The initial determination of the
commission to deny, or to limit, condition, or restrict, a license
may be appealed under section 2505.03 of the Revised Code.
(E)(1) An institutional investor otherwise required to be
found suitable or qualified under this chapter and the rules
adopted under this chapter shall be presumed suitable or qualified
upon submitting documentation sufficient to establish
qualifications as an institutional investor and upon certifying
all of the following:
(a) The institutional investor owns, holds, or controls
publicly traded securities issued by a licensee or holding,
intermediate, or parent company of a licensee or in the ordinary
course of business for investment purposes only.
(b) The institutional investor does not exercise influence
over the affairs of the issuer of such securities nor over any
licensed subsidiary of the issuer of such securities.
(c) The institutional investor does not intend to exercise
influence over the affairs of the issuer of such securities, nor
over any licensed subsidiary of the issuer of such securities, in
the future, and that it agrees to notify the commission in writing
within thirty days if such intent changes.
(2) The exercise of voting privileges with regard to publicly
traded securities shall not be deemed to constitute the exercise
of influence over the affairs of a licensee.
(3) The commission shall rescind the presumption of
suitability for an institutional investor at any time if the
institutional investor exercises or intends to exercise influence
or control over the affairs of the licensee.
(4) This division shall not be construed to preclude the
commission from investigating the suitability or qualifications of
an institutional investor if the commission becomes aware of facts
or information that may result in the institutional investor being
found unsuitable or disqualified.
(F) Information provided on the application shall be used as
a basis for a thorough background investigation of each applicant.
A false or incomplete application is cause for denial of a license
by the commission. All applicants and licensees shall consent to
inspections, searches, and seizures and to the disclosure to the
commission and its agents of confidential records, including tax
records, held by any federal, state, or local agency, credit
bureau, or financial institution and to provide handwriting
exemplars, photographs, fingerprints, and information as
authorized in this chapter and in rules adopted by the commission.
Sec. 3772.17. (A) The upfront license fee to obtain a license
as a casino operator shall be fifty million dollars per casino
facility, which shall be deposited into the economic development
programs fund, which is created in the state treasury. New casino
operator, management company, and holding company license and
renewal license fees shall be set by rule, subject to the review
of the joint committee on gaming and wagering.
(B) The fee to obtain an application for a casino operator,
management company, or holding company license shall be one
million five hundred thousand dollars per application. The
application fee shall be deposited into the casino control
commission fund. The application fee is nonrefundable.
(C) The license fees for a gaming-related vendor shall be set
by rule, subject to the review of the joint committee on gaming
and wagering. Additionally, the commission may assess an applicant
a reasonable fee in the amount necessary to process a
gaming-related vendor license application.
(D) The license fees for a key employee shall be set by rule,
subject to the review of the joint committee on gaming and
wagering. Additionally, the commission may assess an applicant a
reasonable fee in the amount necessary to process a key employee
license application. If the license is being sought at the request
of a casino operator, such fees shall be paid by the casino
operator.
(E) The license fees for a casino gaming employee shall be
set by rule, subject to the review of the joint committee on
gaming and wagering. If the license is being sought at the request
of a casino operator, the fee shall be paid by the casino
operator.
(F) The license fees for a skill-based amusement machine
distributor shall be set by rule, subject to the review of the
joint committee on gaming and wagering. Additionally, the
commission may assess an applicant a reasonable fee in the amount
necessary to process a skill-based amusement machine distributor
license application.
(G) The license fees for a skill-based amusement machine
operator shall be set by rule, subject to the review of the joint
committee on gaming and wagering. Additionally, the commission may
assess an applicant a reasonable fee in the amount necessary to
process a skill-based amusement machine operator license
application.
(H) The license fees for a sweepstakes terminal device
distributor shall be set by rule, subject to the review of the
joint committee on gaming and wagering. Additionally, the
commission may assess an applicant a reasonable fee in the amount
necessary to process a sweepstakes terminal device distributor
license application.
(I) The license fees for a sweepstakes terminal device
operator shall be set by rule, subject to the review of the joint
committee on gaming and wagering. Additionally, the commission may
assess an applicant a reasonable fee in the amount necessary to
process a sweepstakes terminal device operator license
application.
Sec. 3772.21. (A) Casino gaming equipment and supplies
customarily used in conducting casino gaming shall be purchased or
leased only from gaming-related vendors licensed under this
chapter. A management company owning casino gaming devices,
supplies, and equipment shall be licensed as a gaming-related
vendor under this chapter.
(B) Annually, a gaming-related vendor shall furnish to the
commission a list of all equipment, devices, and supplies offered
for sale or lease in connection with casino gaming authorized
under this chapter.
(C) A gaming-related vendor shall keep books and records for
the furnishing of equipment, devices, and supplies to gaming
operations separate from books and records of any other business
operated by the gaming-related vendor. A gaming-related vendor
shall file a quarterly return with the commission listing all
sales and leases. A gaming-related vendor shall permanently affix
the gaming-related vendor's name to all of the gaming-related
vendor's equipment, devices, and supplies for casino gaming
operations.
(D) A gaming-related vendor's equipment, devices, or supplies
that are used by a person in an unauthorized casino gaming
operation shall be forfeited to the commission.
(E) A skill-based amusement machine distributor shall only
provide skill-based amusement machines that have been approved by
the commission to skill-based amusement machine operators who have
received a skill-based amusement machine operator's license from
the commission. The skill-based amusement machine distributor
shall accept payment only by check or electronic funds transfer as
approved by the commission for offering skill-based amusement
machines in this state.
(F) At least once a year, as determined by the commission, a
skill-based amusement machine distributor shall furnish to the
commission a list of all equipment, devices, and supplies offered
for sale or lease by that distributor in this state.
(G) A sweepstakes terminal device distributor shall only
provide sweepstakes terminal devices that have been approved by
the commission to sweepstakes terminal device operators who have
received a sweepstakes terminal device operator's license from the
commission. The sweepstakes terminal device distributor shall
accept payment only by check or electronic funds transfer as
approved by the commission for offering sweepstakes terminal
devices in this state.
(H) At least once a year, as determined by the commission, a
sweepstakes terminal device distributor shall furnish to the
commission a list of all equipment, devices, and supplies offered
for sale or lease by that distributor in this state.
(I) Each skill-based amusement machine distributor and
sweepstakes terminal device distributor shall keep books and
records for the furnishing of equipment, devices, and supplies to
gaming operations separate from books and records of any other
business operated by the distributor. Each skill-based amusement
machine distributor and sweepstakes terminal device distributor
shall file a quarterly return with the commission listing all
sales and leases. A skill-based amusement machine distributor and
a sweepstakes terminal device distributor shall permanently affix
the distributor's name, as filed with the commission, to all of
the distributor's gaming-related equipment, devices, and supplies
used or offered for sale in this state.
Sec. 3772.23. (A) All tokens, chips, or electronic cards that
are used to make wagers shall be purchased from the casino
operator or management company while at a casino facility that has
been approved by the commission. Chips, tokens, tickets,
electronic cards, or similar objects may be used while at the
casino facility only for the purpose of making wagers on casino
games.
(B) Casino operators and, management companies, skill-based
amusement machine distributors, skill-based amusement machine
operators, sweepstakes terminal device distributors, and
sweepstakes terminal device operators shall not do any of the
following:
(1) Obtain a license to operate a check-cashing business
under sections 1315.01 to 1315.30 of the Revised Code;
(2) Obtain a license to provide loans under sections 1321.01
to 1321.19 of the Revised Code;
(3) Obtain a license to provide loans under sections 1321.35
to 1321.48 of the Revised Code.
Sec. 3772.30. (A) If any person violates this chapter or a
rule adopted thereunder, the attorney general has a cause of
action to restrain the violation. Such an action is a civil
action, governed by the Rules of Civil Procedure. Upon receiving a
request from the commission or the executive director, the
attorney general shall may commence and prosecute such an action
to completion. The court shall give priority to such an action
over all other civil actions. Such an action does not preclude an
administrative or criminal proceeding on the same facts.
(B) The attorney general may enter into agreements with any
state or local law enforcement agency to carry out its duties.
(C) A sheriff, chief of police, and prosecuting attorney
shall furnish to the commission, on prescribed forms, all
information obtained during the course of any substantial
investigation or prosecution if it appears a violation of this
chapter has occurred. Any such information is not a public record,
as defined in section 149.43 of the Revised Code, until such
information would otherwise become a public record.
Sec. 3772.31. (A) The commission, by and through the
executive director of the commission and as required under section
125.05 of the Revised Code, may enter into contracts necessary to
ensure the proper operation and reporting of all casino licensed
gaming authorized under this chapter. The commission may determine
it to be necessary and adopt rules to authorize a central system.
The system shall be operated by or under the commission's control.
If the commission determines that a central system is necessary
and adopts rules authorizing a central system, casino operators
shall be responsible for the costs of the central system as it
relates to casino facilities.
Skill-based amusement machine
operators and sweepstakes terminal device operators shall be
responsible for the costs of the central system if the system is
only for skill-based amusement machine gaming and sweepstakes
terminal device gaming as authorized under this chapter.
(B) The commission shall certify independent testing
laboratories to scientifically test and technically evaluate all
slot machines, mechanical, electromechanical, or electronic table
games, slot accounting systems, and other electronic gaming
equipment for compliance with this chapter. The certified
independent testing laboratories shall be accredited by a national
accreditation body. The commission shall certify an independent
testing laboratory if it is competent and qualified to
scientifically test and evaluate electronic gaming equipment for
compliance with this chapter and to otherwise perform the
functions assigned to an independent testing laboratory under this
chapter. An independent testing laboratory shall not be owned or
controlled by, or have any interest in, a gaming-related vendor of
electronic gaming equipment. The commission shall prepare a list
of certified independent testing laboratories from which
independent testing laboratories shall be chosen for all purposes
under this chapter.
Sec. 3772.34. (A) In carrying out the responsibilities
delegated in section 3772.03 of the Revised Code, the commission
may issue a sweepstakes terminal device distributor license if the
applicant meets all requirements under this chapter and any rule
adopted by the commission, and meets all requirements under
Chapter 2915. of the Revised Code.
(B) A person may apply for a sweepstakes terminal device
distributor license. The application shall be made under oath on a
form provided by the commission, and shall contain information as
prescribed by rule including, but not limited to, any information
required by the commission to determine if the applicant is
compliant with the Revised Code and all rules adopted by the
commission. The application shall be accompanied by a license fee
as determined by commission rule, and a nonrefundable license
application fee as described in section 3772.17 of the Revised
Code, which shall cover all actual costs generated by each
applicant and all background checks.
(C) Before a sweepstakes terminal device distributor license
is issued, the applicant shall have all sweepstakes terminal
devices examined and approved by a certified independent testing
laboratory under section 3772.31 of the Revised Code.
(D) The commission may limit, place conditions on, restrict,
suspend, or revoke a license issued under this chapter for any
violation of this chapter or the rules adopted under this chapter
or for any violation of Chapter 2915. of the Revised Code.
Sec. 3772.35. (A) In carrying out the responsibilities
delegated in section 3772.03 of the Revised Code, the commission
may issue a sweepstakes terminal device operator license if the
applicant meets all requirements under this chapter and any rule
adopted by the commission, and meets all requirements under
Chapter 2915. of the Revised Code.
(B) A sweepstakes terminal device operator licensee shall
have the following restrictions:
(1) There shall be not more than five sweepstakes terminal
devices in any licensed location.
(2) No beer or intoxicating liquor shall be served or
consumed in any licensed location.
(3) A sweepstakes terminal device operator, including that
operator's partners, affiliates, subsidiaries, and contractors,
shall operate not more than two licensed locations.
(C) The commission shall limit the number of sweepstakes
terminal device licenses in each county based on the following:
(1) If the county has a population of fifty thousand or less,
the commission shall issue not more than four licenses.
(2) If the county has a population greater than fifty
thousand, but less than one hundred thousand, the commission shall
issue not more than eight licenses.
(3) If the county has a population of one hundred thousand or
greater, but less than two hundred thousand, the commission shall
issue not more than sixteen licenses.
(4) If the county has a population of two hundred thousand or
greater, but less than five hundred thousand, the commission shall
issue not more than thirty-two licenses.
(5) If the county has a population of five hundred thousand
or greater, the commission shall issue not more than sixty-four
licenses.
(D) A person may apply for a sweepstakes terminal device
operator license. The application shall be made under oath on a
form provided by the commission and shall contain information as
prescribed by rule including, but not limited to, any information
required by the commission to determine if the location is
compliant with the Revised Code and all rules adopted by the
commission. The application shall be accompanied by a license fee
as determined by commission rule, and a nonrefundable license
application fee as described in section 3772.17 of the Revised
Code, which shall cover all actual costs generated by each
applicant and all background checks.
(E) The commission may limit, place conditions on, restrict,
suspend, or revoke a license issued under this chapter for any
violation of this chapter or the rules adopted under this chapter
or for any violation of Chapter 2915. of the Revised Code.
Sec. 3772.99. (A) The commission shall levy and collect
penalties for noncriminal violations of this chapter. Moneys
collected from such penalty levies shall be credited to the
general revenue fund.
(B) If a licensed casino operator, management company,
holding company, gaming-related vendor, or key employee licensee
violates this chapter or engages in a fraudulent act, the
commission may suspend or revoke the license and may do either or
both of the following:
(1) Suspend, revoke, or restrict the casino gaming operations
of a casino operator;
(2) Require the removal of a management company, key
employee, or discontinuance of services from a gaming-related
vendor;
(3) Suspend, revoke, or restrict the operations of any
licensee.
(C) The commission shall impose civil penalties against a
person who violates this chapter under the penalties adopted by
commission rule and reviewed by the joint committee on gaming and
wagering.
(D) A person who knowingly or intentionally does any of the
following commits a misdemeanor of the first degree on the first
offense and a felony of the fifth degree for a subsequent offense:
(1) Makes a false statement on an application submitted under
this chapter;
(2) Permits a person less than twenty-one years of age to
make a wager;
(3) Aids, induces, or causes a person less than twenty-one
years of age who is not an employee of the casino gaming operation
to enter or attempt to enter a casino facility;
(4) Enters or attempts to enter a casino facility while under
twenty-one years of age, unless the person enters a designated
area as described in section 3772.24 of the Revised Code;
(5) Wagers or accepts a wager at a location other than a
casino facility;
(6) Is a casino operator or employee and participates in
casino gaming other than as part of operation or employment.
(E) A person who knowingly or intentionally does any of the
following commits a felony of the fifth degree on a first offense
and a felony of the fourth degree for a subsequent offense. If the
person is a licensee under this chapter, the commission shall
revoke the person's license after the first offense.
(1) Offers, promises, or gives anything of value or benefit
to a person who is connected with the casino operator, management
company, holding company, or gaming-related vendor a licensee,
including their officers and employees, under an agreement to
influence or with the intent to influence the actions of the
person to whom the offer, promise, or gift was made in order to
affect or attempt to affect the outcome of a casino game licensee
operations or an official action of a commission member;
(2) Solicits, accepts, or receives a promise of anything of
value or benefit while the person is connected with a casino,
including an officer or employee of a casino operator, management
company, or gaming-related vendor licensee, under an agreement to
influence or with the intent to influence the actions of the
person to affect or attempt to affect the outcome of a casino game
licensee operations or an official action of a commission member;
(3) Uses or possesses with the intent to use a device to
assist in projecting the outcome of the game, keeping track of the
cards played, analyzing the probability of the occurrence of an
event relating to the casino game, or analyzing the strategy for
playing or betting to be used in the game, except as permitted by
the commission;
(4) Cheats at a casino game of a licensee;
(5) Manufactures, sells, or distributes any cards, chips,
dice, game, or device that is intended to be used to violate this
chapter;
(6) Alters or misrepresents the outcome of a casino game of a
licensee on which wagers have been made after the outcome is made
sure but before the outcome is revealed to the players;
(7) Places a wager on the outcome of a casino game of a
licensee after acquiring knowledge that is not available to all
players and concerns the outcome of the casino game that is the
subject of the wager;
(8) Aids a person in acquiring the knowledge described in
division (E)(7) of this section for the purpose of placing a wager
contingent on the outcome of a casino game of a licensee;
(9) Claims, collects, takes, or attempts to claim, collect,
or take money or anything of value in or from a casino game of a
licensee with the intent to defraud or without having made a wager
contingent on winning a casino game of a licensee;
(10) Claims, collects, or takes an amount of money or thing
of value of greater value than the amount won in a casino game of
a licensee;
(11) Uses or possesses counterfeit chips or tokens in or for
use in a casino game of a licensee;
(12) Possesses a key or device designed for opening,
entering, or affecting the operation of a casino game of a
licensee, drop box, or an electronic or a mechanical device
connected with the casino game or removing coins, tokens, chips,
or other contents of a
casino game. This division does not apply
to a casino operator, management company, or gaming-related vendor
licensee or their agents and employees in the course of agency or
employment.
(13) Possesses materials used to manufacture a slug or device
intended to be used in a manner that violates this chapter;
(14) Operates a casino gaming operation in which wagering is
conducted or is to be conducted in a manner other than the manner
required under this chapter.
(F) The possession of more than one of the devices described
in division (E)(11), (12), or (13) of this section creates a
rebuttable presumption that the possessor intended to use the
devices for cheating.
(G) A person who is convicted of a felony described in this
chapter or Chapter 2915. of the Revised Code may be barred for
life from entering a casino licensed facility by the commission.
(H) A person who is convicted of a criminal offense described
in this chapter or Chapter 2915. of the Revised Code may be barred
for a period of up to five years from entering a licensed location
by the commission.
Section 2. That existing sections 2915.01, 2915.03, 2915.06,
2915.061, 2915.08, 2915.09, 3772.01, 3772.02, 3772.03, 3772.032,
3772.033, 3772.04, 3772.06, 3772.07, 3772.10, 3772.17, 3772.21,
3772.23, 3772.30, 3772.31, and 3772.99 of the Revised Code are
hereby repealed.
Section 3. Beginning six months after the effective date of
the rules adopted by the Ohio Casino Control Commission under
section 3772.03 of the Revised Code, as amended by this act, any
person who conducts a skill-based amusement machine or sweepstakes
terminal device without a license issued by the Commission is
considered to be in violation of division (B) of section 2915.06
of the Revised Code in the case of skill-based amusement machines
or division (A)(2) of section 2915.062 of the Revised Code in the
case of sweepstakes terminal devices.
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