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H. B. No. 491 As IntroducedAs Introduced
130th General Assembly | Regular Session | 2013-2014 |
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Representatives Buchy, Blessing
A BILL
To amend sections 119.12, 2915.01, 2915.03, 2915.06,
2915.061, 3770.01, 3770.02, 3770.05, 3772.01,
3772.02, 3772.03, 3772.032, 3772.033, 3772.04,
3772.06, 3772.07, 3772.10, 3772.12, 3772.121,
3772.15, 3772.17, 3772.21, 3772.23, 3772.31, and
3772.99 and to enact sections 2915.062 and 3772.14
of the Revised Code to make various changes to the
Gambling Law, Lottery Law, and Casino Law.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:
Section 1. That sections 119.12, 2915.01, 2915.03, 2915.06,
2915.061, 3770.01, 3770.02, 3770.05, 3772.01, 3772.02, 3772.03,
3772.032, 3772.033, 3772.04, 3772.06, 3772.07, 3772.10, 3772.12,
3772.121, 3772.15, 3772.17, 3772.21, 3772.23, 3772.31, and 3772.99
be amended and sections 2915.062 and 3772.14 of the Revised Code
be enacted to read as follows:
Sec. 119.12. Any party adversely affected by any order of an
agency issued pursuant to an adjudication denying an applicant
admission to an examination, or denying the issuance or renewal of
a license or registration of a licensee, or revoking or suspending
a license, or allowing the payment of a forfeiture under section
4301.252 of the Revised Code may appeal from the order of the
agency to the court of common pleas of the county in which the
place of business of the licensee is located or the county in
which the licensee is a resident, except that appeals from
decisions of the liquor control commission, the Ohio casino
control commission, the state medical board, state chiropractic
board, and the board of nursing shall be to the court of common
pleas of Franklin county. If any party appealing from the order is
not a resident of and has no place of business in this state, the
party may appeal to the court of common pleas of Franklin county.
Any party adversely affected by any order of an agency issued
pursuant to any other adjudication may appeal to the court of
common pleas of Franklin county, except that appeals from orders
of the fire marshal issued under Chapter 3737. of the Revised Code
may be to the court of common pleas of the county in which the
building of the aggrieved person is located and except that
appeals under division (B) of section 124.34 of the Revised Code
from a decision of the state personnel board of review or a
municipal or civil service township civil service commission shall
be taken to the court of common pleas of the county in which the
appointing authority is located or, in the case of an appeal by
the department of rehabilitation and correction, to the court of
common pleas of Franklin county.
This section does not apply to appeals from the department of
taxation.
Any party desiring to appeal shall file a notice of appeal
with the agency setting forth the order appealed from and stating
that the agency's order is not supported by reliable, probative,
and substantial evidence and is not in accordance with law. The
notice of appeal may, but need not, set forth the specific grounds
of the party's appeal beyond the statement that the agency's order
is not supported by reliable, probative, and substantial evidence
and is not in accordance with law. The notice of appeal shall also
be filed by the appellant with the court. In filing a notice of
appeal with the agency or court, the notice that is filed may be
either the original notice or a copy of the original notice.
Unless otherwise provided by law relating to a particular agency,
notices of appeal shall be filed within fifteen days after the
mailing of the notice of the agency's order as provided in this
section. For purposes of this paragraph, an order includes a
determination appealed pursuant to division (C) of section 119.092
of the Revised Code. The amendments made to this paragraph by Sub.
H.B. 215 of the 128th general assembly are procedural, and this
paragraph as amended by those amendments shall be applied
retrospectively to all appeals pursuant to this paragraph filed
before the effective date of those amendments September 13, 2010,
but not earlier than May 7, 2009, which was the date the supreme
court of Ohio released its opinion and judgment in Medcorp, Inc.
v. Ohio Dep't. of Job and Family Servs. (2009), 121 Ohio St.3d
622.
The filing of a notice of appeal shall not automatically
operate as a suspension of the order of an agency. If it appears
to the court that an unusual hardship to the appellant will result
from the execution of the agency's order pending determination of
the appeal, the court may grant a suspension and fix its terms. If
an appeal is taken from the judgment of the court and the court
has previously granted a suspension of the agency's order as
provided in this section, the suspension of the agency's order
shall not be vacated and shall be given full force and effect
until the matter is finally adjudicated. No renewal of a license
or permit shall be denied by reason of the suspended order during
the period of the appeal from the decision of the court of common
pleas. In the case of an appeal from the Ohio casino control
commission, the state medical board, or
the state chiropractic
board, the court may grant a suspension and fix its terms if it
appears to the court that an unusual hardship to the appellant
will result from the execution of the agency's order pending
determination of the appeal and the health, safety, and welfare of
the public will not be threatened by suspension of the order. This
provision shall not be construed to limit the factors the court
may consider in determining whether to suspend an order of any
other agency pending determination of an appeal.
The final order of adjudication may apply to any renewal of a
license or permit which has been granted during the period of the
appeal.
Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, any
order issued by a court of common pleas or a court of appeals
suspending the effect of an order of the liquor control commission
issued pursuant to Chapter 4301. or 4303. of the Revised Code that
suspends, revokes, or cancels a permit issued under Chapter 4303.
of the Revised Code or that allows the payment of a forfeiture
under section 4301.252 of the Revised Code shall terminate not
more than six months after the date of the filing of the record of
the liquor control commission with the clerk of the court of
common pleas and shall not be extended. The court of common pleas,
or the court of appeals on appeal, shall render a judgment in that
matter within six months after the date of the filing of the
record of the liquor control commission with the clerk of the
court of common pleas. A court of appeals shall not issue an order
suspending the effect of an order of the liquor control commission
that extends beyond six months after the date on which the record
of the liquor control commission is filed with a court of common
pleas.
Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, any
order issued by a court of common pleas or a court of appeals
suspending the effect of an order of the Ohio casino control
commission issued under Chapter 3772. of the Revised Code that
limits, conditions, restricts, suspends, revokes, denies, not
renews, fines, or otherwise penalizes an applicant, licensee, or
person excluded or ejected from a casino facility in accordance
with section 3772.031 of the Revised Code shall terminate not more
than six months after the date of the filing of the record of the
Ohio casino control commission with the clerk of the court of
common pleas and shall not be extended. The court of common pleas,
or the court of appeals on appeal, shall render a judgment in that
matter within six months after the date of the filing of the
record of the Ohio casino control commission with the clerk of the
court of common pleas. A court of appeals shall not issue an order
suspending the effect of an order of the Ohio casino control
commission that extends beyond six months after the date on which
the record of the Ohio casino control commission is filed with the
clerk of a court of common pleas.
Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, any
order issued by a court of common pleas suspending the effect of
an order of the state medical board or state chiropractic board
that limits, revokes, suspends, places on probation, or refuses to
register or reinstate a certificate issued by the board or
reprimands the holder of the certificate shall terminate not more
than fifteen months after the date of the filing of a notice of
appeal in the court of common pleas, or upon the rendering of a
final decision or order in the appeal by the court of common
pleas, whichever occurs first.
Within thirty days after receipt of a notice of appeal from
an order in any case in which a hearing is required by sections
119.01 to 119.13 of the Revised Code, the agency shall prepare and
certify to the court a complete record of the proceedings in the
case. Failure of the agency to comply within the time allowed,
upon motion, shall cause the court to enter a finding in favor of
the party adversely affected. Additional time, however, may be
granted by the court, not to exceed thirty days, when it is shown
that the agency has made substantial effort to comply. The record
shall be prepared and transcribed, and the expense of it shall be
taxed as a part of the costs on the appeal. The appellant shall
provide security for costs satisfactory to the court of common
pleas. Upon demand by any interested party, the agency shall
furnish at the cost of the party requesting it a copy of the
stenographic report of testimony offered and evidence submitted at
any hearing and a copy of the complete record.
Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, any
party desiring to appeal an order or decision of the state
personnel board of review shall, at the time of filing a notice of
appeal with the board, provide a security deposit in an amount and
manner prescribed in rules that the board shall adopt in
accordance with this chapter. In addition, the board is not
required to prepare or transcribe the record of any of its
proceedings unless the appellant has provided the deposit
described above. The failure of the board to prepare or transcribe
a record for an appellant who has not provided a security deposit
shall not cause a court to enter a finding adverse to the board.
Unless otherwise provided by law, in the hearing of the
appeal, the court is confined to the record as certified to it by
the agency. Unless otherwise provided by law, the court may grant
a request for the admission of additional evidence when satisfied
that the additional evidence is newly discovered and could not
with reasonable diligence have been ascertained prior to the
hearing before the agency.
The court shall conduct a hearing on the appeal and shall
give preference to all proceedings under sections 119.01 to 119.13
of the Revised Code, over all other civil cases, irrespective of
the position of the proceedings on the calendar of the court. An
appeal from an order of the state medical board issued pursuant to
division (G) of either section 4730.25 or 4731.22 of the Revised
Code, or the state chiropractic board issued pursuant to section
4734.37 of the Revised Code, or the liquor control commission
issued pursuant to Chapter 4301. or 4303. of the Revised Code, or
the Ohio casino control commission issued pursuant to Chapter
3772. of the Revised Code shall be set down for hearing at the
earliest possible time and takes precedence over all other
actions. The hearing in the court of common pleas shall proceed as
in the trial of a civil action, and the court shall determine the
rights of the parties in accordance with the laws applicable to a
civil action. At the hearing, counsel may be heard on oral
argument, briefs may be submitted, and evidence may be introduced
if the court has granted a request for the presentation of
additional evidence.
The court may affirm the order of the agency complained of in
the appeal if it finds, upon consideration of the entire record
and any additional evidence the court has admitted, that the order
is supported by reliable, probative, and substantial evidence and
is in accordance with law. In the absence of this finding, it may
reverse, vacate, or modify the order or make such other ruling as
is supported by reliable, probative, and substantial evidence and
is in accordance with law. The court shall award compensation for
fees in accordance with section 2335.39 of the Revised Code to a
prevailing party, other than an agency, in an appeal filed
pursuant to this section.
The judgment of the court shall be final and conclusive
unless reversed, vacated, or modified on appeal. These appeals may
be taken either by the party or the agency, shall proceed as in
the case of appeals in civil actions, and shall be pursuant to the
Rules of Appellate Procedure and, to the extent not in conflict
with those rules, Chapter 2505. of the Revised Code. An appeal by
the agency shall be taken on questions of law relating to the
constitutionality, construction, or interpretation of statutes and
rules of the agency, and, in the appeal, the court may also review
and determine the correctness of the judgment of the court of
common pleas that the order of the agency is not supported by any
reliable, probative, and substantial evidence in the entire
record.
The court shall certify its judgment to the agency or take
any other action necessary to give its judgment effect.
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 unless authorized
under Chapter 3772. of the Revised Code, lottery unless authorized
under Chapter 3770. of the Revised Code, 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. "Scheme of chance" includes the use of an
electronic device to reveal the results of a game entry if
valuable consideration is paid, directly or indirectly, for a
chance to win a prize. Valuable consideration is deemed to be paid
for a chance to win a prize in the following instances:
(1) Less than fifty per cent of the goods or services sold by
a scheme of chance operator in exchange for game entries are used
or redeemed by participants at any one location;
(2) Less than fifty per cent of participants who purchase
goods or services at any one location do not accept, use, or
redeem the goods or services sold or purportedly sold;
(3) More than fifty per cent of prizes at any one location
are revealed to participants through an electronic device
simulating a game of chance or a "casino game" as defined in
section 3772.01 of the Revised Code;
(4) The good or service sold by a scheme of chance operator
in exchange for a game entry cannot be used or redeemed in the
manner advertised;
(5) A participant pays more than fair market value for goods
or services offered by a scheme of chance operator in order to
receive one or more game entries;
(6) A participant may use the electronic device to purchase
additional game entries;
(7) A participant may purchase additional game entries by
using points or credits won as prizes while using the electronic
device;
(8) A scheme of chance operator pays out in prize money more
than twenty per cent of the gross revenue received at one
location; or
(9) A participant makes a purchase or exchange in order to
obtain any good or service that may be used to facilitate play on
the electronic device.
As used in this division, "electronic device" means a
mechanical, video, digital, or electronic machine or device that
is capable of displaying information on a screen or other
mechanism and that is owned, leased, or otherwise possessed by any
person conducting a scheme of chance, or by that person's
partners, affiliates, subsidiaries, or contractors.
(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 or slot machines used in
violation of this chapter or Chapter 3772. of the Revised Code.
(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, 2915.07, 2915.08, 2915.081, 2915.082,
2915.09, 2915.091, 2915.092, 2915.10, or 2915.11 or of division
(D), (E), or (F) of section 3772.99 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 either of the following:
(1) An organization that 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) of the Internal Revenue Code;
(2) A volunteer rescue service organization, volunteer
firefighter's organization, veteran's organization, fraternal
organization, or sporting organization that is exempt from federal
income taxation under subsection 501(c)(4), (c)(7), (c)(8),
(c)(10), or (c)(19) of the Internal Revenue Code.
To qualify as a "charitable organization," an 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.
(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) "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.
(K) "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.
(L) "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.
(M) "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.
(N) "Charitable bingo game" means any bingo game described in
division (O)(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.
(O) "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 (O)(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.
(P) "Conduct" means to back, promote, organize, manage, carry
on, sponsor, or prepare for the operation of bingo or a game of
chance, a scheme of chance, or a sweepstakes, or a skill-based
amusement machine.
(Q) "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.
(R) "Participant" means any person who plays bingo.
(S) "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 (O)(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 (S)(1) of this section.
(T) "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.
(U) "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.
(V) "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 (K) of this section.
(W) "Internal Revenue Code" means the "Internal Revenue Code
of 1986," 100 Stat. 2085, 26 U.S.C. 1, as now or hereafter
amended.
(X) "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.
(Y) "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 (Y)(1) of this section.
(Z) "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.
(AA) "Instant bingo" means a form of bingo that shall use
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, and may also include games in which some winners are
determined by the random selection of one or more bingo numbers by
the use of a seal card or bingo blower. In all "instant bingo" the
prize amount and structure shall be predetermined. "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.
(BB) "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.
(CC) "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.
(DD) "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.
(EE) "Gross profit" means gross receipts minus the amount
actually expended for the payment of prize awards.
(FF) "Net profit" means gross profit minus expenses.
(GG) "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.
(HH) "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.
(II) "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.
(JJ) "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.
(KK) "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.
(LL) "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.
(MM) "Gross annual revenues" means the annual gross receipts
derived from the conduct of bingo described in division (O)(1) of
this section plus the annual net profit derived from the conduct
of bingo described in division (O)(2) of this section.
(NN) "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.
(OO)(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.
(PP) "Deal of instant bingo tickets" means a single game of
instant bingo tickets all with the same serial number.
(QQ)(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.
(RR) "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, minus the payment
by that organization of real property taxes and assessments levied
on a premises on which instant bingo is conducted.
(SS) "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.
(TT) "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.
(UU)(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.
A card for the purchase of gasoline is a redeemable voucher
for purposes of division (UU)(1) of this section even if the
skill-based amusement machine for the play of which the card is
awarded is located at a place where gasoline may not be legally
distributed to the public or the card is not redeemable at the
location of, or at the time of playing, the skill-based amusement
machine.
(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 (UU)(1) of this section:
(a) As used in division (UU) of 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 (UU)(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.
(VV) "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 (VV)(1), (2), or (3) of this section.
(WW) "Redeemable voucher" means any ticket, token, coupon,
receipt, or other noncash representation of value.
(XX) "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.
(YY) "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 league of Ohio sportsmen, and
that has been in continuous existence in this state for a period
of three years.
(ZZ) "Community action agency" has the same meaning as in
section 122.66 of the Revised Code.
(AAA)(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 if any of the following apply:
(a) The device uses a simulated game terminal as a
representation of the prizes associated with the results of the
sweepstakes entries.
(b) The device utilizes software such that the simulated game
influences or determines the winning of or value of the prize.
(c) The device selects prizes from a predetermined finite
pool of entries.
(d) The device utilizes a mechanism that reveals the content
of a predetermined sweepstakes entry.
(e) The device predetermines the prize results and stores
those results for delivery at the time the sweepstakes entry
results are revealed.
(f) The device utilizes software to create a game result.
(g) The device reveals the prize incrementally, even though
the device does not influence the awarding of the prize or the
value of any prize awarded.
(h) The device determines and associates the prize with an
entry or entries at the time the sweepstakes is entered.
(2) As used in this division and in section 2915.02 of the
Revised Code:
(a) "Enter" means the act by which a person becomes eligible
to receive any prize offered in a sweepstakes.
(b) "Entry" means one event from the initial activation of
the sweepstakes terminal device until all the sweepstakes prize
results from that activation are revealed.
(c) "Prize" means any gift, award, gratuity, good, service,
credit, reward, or any other thing of value that 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.
(d) "Sweepstakes terminal device facility" means any location
in this state where a sweepstakes terminal device is provided to a
sweepstakes participant, except as provided in division (G) of
section 2915.02 of the Revised Code.
(BBB) "Sweepstakes" means any game, contest, advertising
scheme or plan, or other promotion where consideration is not
required for a person to enter to win or become eligible to
receive any prize, the determination of which is based upon
chance. "Sweepstakes" does not include bingo as authorized under
this chapter, pari-mutuel wagering as authorized by Chapter 3769.
of the Revised Code, lotteries conducted by the state lottery
commission as authorized by Chapter 3770. of the Revised Code, and
casino gaming as authorized by Chapter 3772. of the Revised Code.
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, or 2915.062 or of division (E)(12) of
section 3772.99 of the Revised Code;
(2) Recklessly permit such premises to be used or occupied
for gambling in violation of section 2915.02, 2915.06, or 2915.062
or of division (E)(12) of section 3772.99 of the Revised Code.
(B) Whoever violates this section is guilty of operating a
gambling house, a
misdemeanor felony of the first fifth degree. If
the offender previously has been convicted of a gambling offense,
operating a gambling house is a felony of the fifth fourth 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 (VV)(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, or participate in the conduct
of, 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 felony of the
first
fifth degree for each redemption of a prize that is
involved in the violation. If the offender previously has been
convicted of a
gambling offense, violation of division (A) of
this section, a violation of that division is a felony of the
fifth fourth 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 fourth 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 fifth degree. If the offender previously has been convicted
of a gambling offense, violation of division (B) of this section
is a felony of the fourth degree.
(E) Premises used or occupied in violation of this section
constitute a nuisance subject to abatement under Chapter 3767. of
the Revised Code.
Sec. 2915.061. Any regulation of skill-based amusement
machines shall be governed by this chapter and Chapter 3772. of
the Revised Code and not by Chapter 1345. of the Revised Code.
Sec. 2915.062. (A) Except as otherwise expressly permitted
by law, no person shall conduct, or participate in the conduct of,
a casino game, as defined in section 3772.01 of the Revised Code,
without first obtaining a license under Chapter 3772. of the
Revised Code.
(B) Whoever violates this section is guilty of conducting an
illegal casino game, a felony of the fifth degree. If the offender
previously has been convicted of a gambling offense, violation of
this section is a felony of the fourth degree.
(C) Premises used or occupied in violation of this section
constitute a nuisance subject to abatement under Chapter 3767. of
the Revised Code.
Sec. 3770.01. (A) There is hereby created the state lottery
commission consisting of nine members appointed by the governor
with the advice and consent of the senate. No more than five
members of the commission shall be members of the same political
party. Of the additional and new appointments made to the
commission pursuant to the amendment of August 1, 1980, three
shall be for terms ending August 1, 1981, three shall be for terms
ending August 1, 1982, and three shall be for terms ending August
1, 1983. Thereafter, terms of office shall be for three years,
each term ending on the same day of the same month of the year as
did the term which it succeeds.
(B) Each 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 prior
to the expiration of the term for which the member's predecessor
was appointed shall hold office for the remainder of that term.
Any member shall continue in office subsequent to 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.
(C) All members of the commission shall be citizens of the
United States and residents of this state. The members of the
commission shall represent the various geographic regions of the
state. No member of the commission shall have any pecuniary
interest in any contract or license awarded by the commission. One
person appointed as a member of the commission shall
represent an
organization that deals with have experience or training in the
area of problem gambling or other addictions and assists in
assistance to recovering gambling or other addicts. Each person
appointed as a member of the commission, except the member
appointed as a representative of an organization that deals with
problem gambling and assists recovering gambling addicts, shall
have prior experience or education in business administration,
management, sales, marketing, or advertising.
(D) The commission shall elect annually one of its members to
serve as chairperson for a term of one year. Election as
chairperson shall not extend a member's appointive term. Each
member of the commission shall receive an annual salary of five
thousand dollars, payable in monthly installments. Each member of
the commission also shall receive the member's actual and
necessary expenses incurred in the discharge of the member's
official duties.
(E) Each member of the commission, before entering upon the
discharge of the member's official duties, shall give a bond,
payable 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.
(F) The governor may remove any member of the commission for
malfeasance, misfeasance, or nonfeasance in office, giving the
member a copy of the charges against the member and affording the
member an opportunity to be publicly heard in person or by counsel
in the member's own defense upon not less than ten days' notice.
If the member is removed, the governor shall file in the office of
the secretary of state a complete statement of all charges made
against the member and the governor's finding on the charges,
together with a complete report of the proceedings, and the
governor's decision on the charges is final.
(G) The commission shall maintain offices at locations in the
state as it may consider necessary for the efficient performance
of its functions. The director shall maintain an office in
Columbus to coordinate the activities of the state lottery
commission with other state departments.
Sec. 3770.02. (A) Subject to the advice and consent of the
senate, the governor shall appoint a director of the state lottery
commission who shall serve at the pleasure of the governor. The
director shall devote full time to the duties of the office and
shall hold no other office or employment. The director shall meet
all requirements for appointment as a member of the commission and
shall, by experience and training, possess management skills that
equip the director to administer an enterprise of the nature of a
state lottery. The director shall receive an annual salary in
accordance with pay range 48 of section 124.152 of the Revised
Code.
(B)(1) The director shall attend all meetings of the
commission and shall act as its secretary. The 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. All records of the commission's meetings shall
be available for inspection by any member of the public, upon a
showing of good cause and prior notification to the director.
(2) The director shall be the commission's executive officer
and shall be responsible for keeping all commission records and
supervising and administering the state lottery in accordance with
this chapter, and carrying out all commission rules adopted under
section 3770.03 of the Revised Code.
(C)(1) The director shall appoint an assistant director,
deputy directors of marketing, operations, sales, finance, public
relations, security, and administration, and as many regional
managers as are required. The director may also appoint necessary
professional, technical, and clerical assistants. All such
officers and employees shall be appointed and compensated pursuant
to Chapter 124. of the Revised Code. Regional and assistant
regional managers, sales representatives, and any lottery
executive account representatives shall remain in the unclassified
service.
(2) The director, in consultation with the director of
administrative services, may establish standards of proficiency
and productivity for commission field representatives.
(D) The director shall request the bureau of criminal
identification and investigation, the department of public safety,
or any other state, local, or federal agency to supply the
director with the criminal records of any job applicant and may
periodically request the criminal records of commission employees.
At or prior to the time of making such a request, the director
shall require a job applicant or commission employee to obtain
fingerprint cards prescribed by the superintendent of the bureau
of criminal identification and investigation at a qualified law
enforcement agency, and the director shall cause these fingerprint
cards to be forwarded to the bureau of criminal identification and
investigation and the federal bureau of investigation. The
commission shall assume the cost of obtaining the fingerprint
cards and shall pay to each agency supplying criminal records for
each investigation under this division a reasonable fee, as
determined by the agency.
(E) The director shall license lottery sales agents pursuant
to section 3770.05 of the Revised Code and, when it is considered
necessary, may revoke or suspend the license of any lottery sales
agent. The director may license video lottery technology
providers, independent testing laboratories, and gaming employees,
and promulgate rules relating thereto. When the director considers
it necessary, the director may suspend or revoke the license of a
video lottery technology provider, independent testing laboratory,
or gaming employee, including suspension or revocation without
affording an opportunity for a prior hearing under section 119.07
of the Revised Code when the public safety, convenience, or trust
requires immediate action.
(F) The director shall confer at least once each month with
the commission, at which time the director shall advise it
regarding the operation and administration of the lottery. The
director shall make available at the request of the commission all
documents, files, and other records pertaining to the operation
and administration of the lottery. The director shall prepare and
make available to the commission each month a complete and
accurate accounting of lottery revenues, prize money disbursements
and the cost of goods and services awarded as prizes, operating
expenses, and all other relevant financial information, including
an accounting of all transfers made from any lottery funds in the
custody of the treasurer of state to benefit education.
(G) The director may enter into contracts for the operation
or promotion of the lottery pursuant to Chapter 125. of the
Revised Code.
(H)(1) Pursuant to rules adopted by the commission under
section 3770.03 of the Revised Code, the director shall require
any lottery sales agents to deposit to the credit of the state
lottery fund, in banking institutions designated by the treasurer
of state, net proceeds due the commission as determined by the
director.
(2) Pursuant to rules adopted by the commission under Chapter
119. of the Revised Code, the director may impose penalties for
the failure of a sales agent to transfer funds to the commission
in a timely manner. Penalties may include monetary penalties,
immediate suspension or revocation of a license, or any other
penalty the commission adopts by rule.
(I) The director may arrange for any person, or any banking
institution, to perform functions and services in connection with
the operation of the lottery as the director may consider
necessary to carry out this chapter.
(J)(1) As used in this chapter, "statewide joint lottery
game" means a lottery game that the commission sells solely within
this state under an agreement with other lottery jurisdictions to
sell the same lottery game solely within their statewide or other
jurisdictional boundaries.
(2) If the governor directs the director to do so, the
director shall enter into an agreement with other lottery
jurisdictions to conduct statewide joint lottery games. If the
governor signs the agreement personally or by means of an
authenticating officer pursuant to section 107.15 of the Revised
Code, the director then may conduct statewide joint lottery games
under the agreement. Before the governor directs the director to
enter into an agreement, the commission may begin discussions and
the planning process for a statewide joint lottery game, but the
commission shall not file the rules for the game under division
(B) or (H) of section 119.03 of the Revised Code before the
governor directs the director to enter into the agreement.
(3) The entire net proceeds from any statewide joint lottery
games shall be used to fund elementary, secondary, vocational, and
special education programs in this state.
(4) The commission shall conduct any statewide joint lottery
games in accordance with rules it adopts under division (B)(5) of
section 3770.03 of the Revised Code.
(K)(1) The director shall enter into an agreement with the
department of mental health and addiction services under which the
department shall provide a program of gambling addiction services
on behalf of the commission. The commission shall pay the costs of
the program provided pursuant to the agreement.
(2) As used in this section, "gambling addiction services"
has the same meaning as in section 5119.01 of the Revised Code.
Sec. 3770.05. (A) As used in this section, "person" means
any person, association, corporation, partnership, club, trust,
estate, society, receiver, trustee, person acting in a fiduciary
or representative capacity, instrumentality of the state or any of
its political subdivisions, or any other combination of
individuals meeting the requirements set forth in this section or
established by rule or order of the state lottery commission.
(B) The director of the state lottery commission may license
any person as a lottery sales agent. No license shall be issued to
any person or group of persons to engage in the sale of lottery
tickets as the person's or group's sole occupation or business.
Before issuing any license to a lottery sales agent, the
director shall consider all of the following:
(1) The financial responsibility and security of the
applicant and the applicant's business or activity;
(2) The accessibility of the applicant's place of business or
activity to the public;
(3) The sufficiency of existing licensed agents to serve the
public interest;
(4) The volume of expected sales by the applicant;
(5) Any other factors pertaining to the public interest,
convenience, or trust.
(C) Except as otherwise provided in division (F) of this
section, the director of the state lottery commission shall refuse
to grant, or shall suspend or revoke, a license if the applicant
or licensee:
(1) Has been convicted of a felony or has been convicted of a
crime involving moral turpitude;
(2) Has been convicted of an offense that involves illegal
gambling;
(3) Has been found guilty of fraud or misrepresentation in
any connection;
(4) Has been found to have violated any rule or order of the
commission; or
(5) Has been convicted of illegal trafficking in supplemental
nutrition assistance program benefits.
(D) Except as otherwise provided in division (F) of this
section, the director of the state lottery commission shall refuse
to grant, or shall suspend or revoke, a license if the applicant
or licensee is a corporation and any of the following applies:
(1) Any of the corporation's directors, officers, or
controlling shareholders has been found guilty of any of the
activities specified in divisions (C)(1) to (5) of this section;
(2) It appears to the director of the state lottery
commission that, due to the experience, character, or general
fitness of any director, officer, or controlling shareholder of
the corporation, the granting of a license as a lottery sales
agent would be inconsistent with the public interest, convenience,
or trust;
(3) The corporation is not the owner or lessee of the
business at which it would conduct a lottery sales agency pursuant
to the license applied for;
(4) Any person, firm, association, or corporation other than
the applicant or licensee shares or will share in the profits of
the applicant or licensee, other than receiving dividends or
distributions as a shareholder, or participates or will
participate in the management of the affairs of the applicant or
licensee.
(E)(1) The director of the state lottery commission shall
refuse to grant a license to an applicant for a lottery sales
agent license and shall revoke a lottery sales agent license if
the applicant or licensee is or has been convicted of a violation
of division (A) or (C)(1) of section 2913.46 of the Revised Code.
(2) The director shall refuse to grant a license to an
applicant for a lottery sales agent license that is a corporation
and shall revoke the lottery sales agent license of a corporation
if the corporation is or has been convicted of a violation of
division (A) or (C)(1) of section 2913.46 of the Revised Code.
(F) The director of the state lottery commission shall
request the bureau of criminal identification and investigation,
the department of public safety, or any other state, local, or
federal agency to supply the director with the criminal records of
any applicant for a lottery sales agent license, and may
periodically request the criminal records of any person to whom a
lottery sales agent license has been issued. At or prior to the
time of making such a request, the director shall require an
applicant or licensee to obtain fingerprint impressions on
fingerprint cards prescribed by the superintendent of the bureau
of criminal identification and investigation at a qualified law
enforcement agency, and the director shall cause those fingerprint
cards to be forwarded to the bureau of criminal identification and
investigation, to the federal bureau of investigation, or to both
bureaus. The commission shall assume the cost of obtaining the
fingerprint cards.
The director shall pay to each agency supplying criminal
records for each investigation a reasonable fee, as determined by
the agency.
The commission may adopt uniform rules specifying time
periods after which the persons described in divisions (C)(1) to
(5) and (D)(1) to (4) of this section may be issued a license and
establishing requirements for those persons to seek a court order
to have records sealed in accordance with law.
(G)(1) Each applicant for a lottery sales agent license shall
do both of the following:
(a) Pay fees to the state lottery commission, if required by
rule adopted by the director under Chapter 119. of the Revised
Code and the controlling board approves the fees;
(b) Prior to approval of the application, obtain a surety
bond in an amount the director determines by rule adopted under
Chapter 119. of the Revised Code or, alternatively, with the
director's approval, deposit the same amount into a dedicated
account for the benefit of the state lottery. The director also
may approve the obtaining of a surety bond to cover part of the
amount required, together with a dedicated account deposit to
cover the remainder of the amount required. The director also may
establish an alternative program or policy, with the approval of
the commission by rule adopted under Chapter 119. of the Revised
Code, that otherwise ensures the lottery's financial interests are
adequately protected. If such an alternative program or policy is
established, an applicant or lottery sales agent, subject to the
director's approval, may be permitted to participate in the
program or proceed under that policy in lieu of providing a surety
bond or dedicated amount.
A surety bond may be with any company that complies with the
bonding and surety laws of this state and the requirements
established by rules of the commission pursuant to this chapter. A
dedicated account deposit shall be conducted in accordance with
policies and procedures the director establishes.
A surety bond, dedicated account, other established program
or policy, or any combination of these resources, as applicable,
may be used to pay for the lottery sales agent's failure to make
prompt and accurate payments for lottery ticket sales, for missing
or stolen lottery tickets, for damage to equipment or materials
issued to the lottery sales agent, or to pay for expenses the
commission incurs in connection with the lottery sales agent's
license.
(2) A lottery sales agent license is effective for at least
one year, but not more than three years.
A licensed lottery sales agent, on or before the date
established by the director, shall renew the agent's license and
provide at that time evidence to the director that the surety
bond, dedicated account deposit, or both, required under division
(G)(1)(b) of this section has been renewed or is active, whichever
applies.
Before the commission renews a lottery sales agent license,
the lottery sales agent shall submit a renewal fee to the
commission, if one is required by rule adopted by the director
under Chapter 119. of the Revised Code and the controlling board
approves the renewal fee. The renewal fee shall not exceed the
actual cost of administering the license renewal and processing
changes reflected in the renewal application. The renewal of the
license is effective for at least one year, but not more than
three years.
(3) A lottery sales agent license shall be complete,
accurate, and current at all times during the term of the license.
Any changes to an original license application or a renewal
application may subject the applicant or lottery sales agent, as
applicable, to paying an administrative fee that shall be in an
amount that the director determines by rule adopted under Chapter
119. of the Revised Code, that the controlling board approves, and
that shall not exceed the actual cost of administering and
processing the changes to an application.
(4) The relationship between the commission and a lottery
sales agent is one of trust. A lottery sales agent collects funds
on behalf of the commission through the sale of lottery tickets
for which the agent receives a compensation.
(H) Pending a final resolution of any question arising under
this section, the director of the state lottery commission may
issue a temporary lottery sales agent license, subject to the
terms and conditions the director considers appropriate.
(I) If a lottery sales agent's rental payments for the
lottery sales agent's premises are determined, in whole or in
part, by the amount of retail sales the lottery sales agent makes,
and if the rental agreement does not expressly provide that the
amount of those retail sales includes the amounts the lottery
sales agent receives from lottery ticket sales, only the amounts
the lottery sales agent receives as compensation from the state
lottery commission for selling lottery tickets shall be considered
to be amounts the lottery sales agent receives from the retail
sales the lottery sales agent makes, for the purpose of computing
the lottery sales agent's rental payments.
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 game" means any slot machine or table game as
defined in this chapter.
(E) "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.
(F) "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.
(G) "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.
(H) "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 or
skill-based amusement machine equipment used in accordance with
this chapter and Chapter 2915. of the Revised Code: security,
auditing, data and information retrieval, and other purposes
deemed necessary and authorized by the commission.
(I) "Cheat" means to alter the result of a casino game, the
element of chance, the operation of a machine used in a casino
game, or the method of selection of criteria that determines (a)
the result of the casino game, (b) the amount or frequency of
payment in a casino game, (c) the value of a wagering instrument,
or (d) the value of a wagering credit. "Cheat" does not include an
individual who, without the assistance of another individual or
without the use of a physical aid or device of any kind, uses the
individual's own ability to keep track of the value of cards
played and uses predictions formed as a result of the tracking
information in the individual's playing and betting strategy.
(J) "Commission" means the Ohio casino control commission.
(K) "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.
(L) "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, or who supplies skill-based amusement
machine equipment, goods, or services to a skill-based amusement
machine operator.
(M) "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 does any of the following:
(1) Has the power or right to control a casino operator,
management company, skill-based amusement machine operator, or
gaming-related vendor license applicant or licensee;
(2) Holds an ownership interest of five per cent or more, as
determined by the commission, in a casino operator, management
company, skill-based amusement machine operator, or gaming-related
vendor license applicant or licensee;
(3) Holds voting rights with the power to vote five per cent
or more of the outstanding voting rights of a casino operator,
management company, skill-based amusement machine operator, or
gaming-related vendor applicant or licensee.
(N) "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.
(O) "Institutional investor" means any of the following
entities owning five per cent or more, but less than fifteen per
cent, of an ownership interest in a casino facility, casino
operator, management company, skill-based amusement machine
operator, gaming-related vendor, 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, including a hedge fund, mutual fund, or private equity
fund, 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, and that does not exercise control over the
affairs of a licensee and its ownership interest in a licensee is
for investment purposes only, as set forth in division (E) of
section 3772.10 of the Revised Code.
(P) "Key employee" means any executive, employee, or agent
who has the power to exercise significant influence over decisions
concerning any part of the operation 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, skill-based amusement machine
operator, holding company, or gaming-related vendor, including:
(1) An officer, director, trustee, or partner of a person
that has applied for or holds a casino operator, management
company, skill-based amusement machine operator, 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, skill-based amusement machine operator, 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, skill-based
amusement machine operator, 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, skill-based
amusement machine operator, or gaming-related vendor license;
(3) A managerial employee who performs the function of
principal executive officer, principal operating officer,
principal accounting officer, or an equivalent officer or other
person the commission determines has the power to exercise
significant influence over decisions concerning any part of the
operation of a person that has applied for or holds a casino
operator, management company, skill-based amusement machine
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 a license.
The commission shall determine whether an individual whose
duties or status varies from those described in this division also
is considered a key employee.
(Q) "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.
(R) "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.
(S) "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.
(T) "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.
(U) "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.
(V) "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.
(W) "Promotional gaming credit" means a slot machine or table
game credit, discount, or other similar item issued to a patron to
enable the placement of, or increase in, a wager at a slot machine
or table game.
(X) "Skill-based amusement machine" has the same meaning as
in section 2915.01 of the Revised Code.
(Y) "Skill-based amusement machine operator" means a person
that provides skill-based amusement machines to a player or
participant.
(Z) "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, but
does not include any device that is a skill-based amusement
machine, as defined in section 2915.01 of the Revised Code.
(Y)(AA) "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.
(Z)(BB) "Upfront license" means the first plenary license
issued to a casino operator.
(AA)(CC) "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 thirty 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, 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
and skill-based amusement machines, 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, skill-based amusement machine operators, 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 and in skill-based amusement machine operations
authorized by this chapter and Chapter 2915. of the Revised Code.
(B) 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) Within six months of September 10, 2010, the The
commission shall adopt initial rules as are necessary for
completing the functions stated in division (A) of this section
and for addressing the subjects enumerated in division (D) of this
section.
(D) 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 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,
management company, or skill-based amusement machine operator;
(5) The minimum amount of insurance that must be maintained
by a casino operator, management company, skill-based amusement
machine operator, holding company, or gaming-related vendor;
(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 casino gaming and skill-based amusement
machine supplies, devices, and equipment to be distributed by
gaming-related vendors;
(8) Identifying the casino gaming that is permitted,
identifying the casino gaming and skill-based amusement machine
supplies, devices, and equipment, that are permitted, defining the
area in which the permitted casino gaming may be conducted, and
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 casino gaming and
skill-based amusement machine 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.
(h) A person who enters a casino facility while participating
in the program shall surrender any money or thing of value that
the person has converted or attempted to convert into a wagering
instrument, including, but not limited to, chips, tokens, prizes,
jackpots, non-complimentary pay vouchers, cash, cash equivalents,
electronic credits, and vouchers representing electronic credits,
to the commission for deposit in the problem casino gambling and
addictions fund.
(11) Requiring the commission to adopt standards regarding
the marketing materials of a licensed casino operator and
skill-based amusement machine 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,
skill-based amusement machine operator, holding company, and
gaming-related vendor 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, skill-based amusement machine operator, key employee, or
casino gaming employee 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 and in which winnings or compensation from
skill-based amusement machine operations must be computed and
reported by a licensee under this chapter;
(18) Prescribing conditions under which a licensee's license
may be suspended or revoked as described in section 3772.04 of the
Revised Code;
(19) Prescribing the manner and procedure of all hearings to
be conducted by the commission or by any hearing examiner;
(20) 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 standards and requirements for
the provision of security at and surveillance of casino
facilities;
(21) 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) 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, and
standards according to which skill-based amusement machine
operators shall keep accounts and standards according to which
such accounts shall be audited;
(23) 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) Establishing standards for decertifying contractors that
violate statutes or rules of this state or the federal government;
(25) Establishing standards for the repair of casino gaming
equipment and skill-based amusement machines;
(26) 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) Prescribing, for institutional investors in or holding
companies of a casino operator, management company, skill-based
amusement machine operator, holding company, or gaming-related
vendor that fall below the threshold needed to be considered an
institutional investor or a holding company, standards regarding
what any employees, members, or owners of those investors or
holding companies may do and shall not do in relation to casino
facilities and casino gaming or skill-based amusement machines in
this state, which standards shall rationally relate to the need to
proscribe conduct that is inconsistent with passive institutional
investment status;
(28) Providing for any other thing necessary and proper for
successful and efficient regulation of casino gaming and
skill-based amusement machines under this chapter.
(E) The commission shall employ and assign gaming agents as
necessary to assist the commission in carrying out the duties of
this chapter and Chapter 2915. of the Revised Code. 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) The commission, as a law enforcement agency, and its
gaming agents, as law enforcement officers as defined in section
2901.01 of the Revised Code, 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 violations of this chapter or gambling
offenses as defined in section 2915.01 of the Revised Code or
violating any other law of this state that may affect the
integrity of casino gaming or the operation of skill-based
amusement machines, and shall have access to casino facilities and
skill-based amusement machine operators' facilities to carry out
the requirements of this chapter.
(G) 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 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 a casino
facility may call into question the honesty and integrity of the
casino gaming operations or interfere with the orderly conduct of
the casino gaming operations.
(H) 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) 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) 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) Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, beginning on
July 1, 2011, the The commission shall assume have jurisdiction
over and oversee the regulation of skill-based amusement machines
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 house 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 gaming and
skill-based amusement machines and all authorized gaming and
wagering 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 to the operation and administration of
casino gaming and skill-based amusement machines;
(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 gaming and skill-based
amusement machines, 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 gaming is
conducted, skill-based amusement machines are operated, or where
casino gaming or skill-based amusement machine supplies, devices,
or equipment are manufactured, sold, or distributed;
(B) Inspect all casino gaming or skill-based amusement
machine supplies, devices, and equipment in or about a casino
facility or skill-based amusement machine operator facility;
(C) Summarily impound and seize and remove from the casino
facility or skill-based amusement machine operator facility
premises casino gaming or skill-based amusement machine 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 casino gaming or skill-based amusement machine
operations, including those that have ceased operation;
(F) Investigate, for the purpose of prosecution, any
suspected violation of this chapter or rules adopted thereunder or
of Chapter 2915. of the Revised Code or any other law of this
state that may affect the integrity of casino gaming or operation
of skill-based amusement machines;
(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,
accounting, technical, operational, and other personnel and
consultants;
(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) Perform all other things the commission considers
necessary to effectuate the intents and purposes of this chapter
and Chapter 2915. of the Revised Code. 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 the commission concludes that a
license required by this chapter should be limited, conditioned,
restricted, suspended, revoked, denied, or not renewed, the
commission may, and if so requested by a licensee or applicant,
shall, conduct a hearing in an adjudication under Chapter 119. of
the Revised Code. After notice and opportunity for a hearing, the
commission may limit, condition, restrict, suspend, revoke, deny,
or not renew a license under rules adopted by the commission. The
commission may reopen a licensing adjudication at any time.
(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 fails or has failed
to meet any requirement under this chapter or a rule adopted
thereunder or under Chapter 2915. of the Revised Code, or violates
or has violated this chapter or a rule adopted thereunder or
Chapter 2915. of the Revised Code or a rule adopted thereunder,
the commission may issue an order:
(a) Limiting, conditioning, restricting, suspending,
revoking, denying, or not renewing, a license issued under this
chapter;
(b) 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
(c) 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) Without in any manner limiting the authority of the
commission to impose the level and type of discipline the
commission considers appropriate, the commission may take into
consideration the following:
(1) If the licensee knew or reasonably should have known that
the action complained of was a violation of any law, rule, or
condition on the licensee's license;
(2) If the licensee has previously been disciplined by the
commission;
(3) If the licensee has previously been subject to discipline
by the commission concerning the violation of any law, rule, or
condition of the licensee's license;
(4) If the licensee reasonably relied upon professional
advice from a lawyer, doctor, accountant, or other recognized
professional that was relevant to the action resulting in the
violation;
(5) If the licensee or the licensee's employer had a
reasonably constituted and functioning compliance program;
(6) If the imposition of a condition requiring the licensee
to establish and implement a written self-enforcement and
compliance program would assist in ensuring the licensee's future
compliance with all statutes, rules, and conditions of the
license;
(7) If the licensee realized a pecuniary gain from the
violation;
(8) If the amount of any fine or other penalty imposed would
result in disgorgement of any gains unlawfully realized by the
licensee;
(9) If the violation was caused by an officer or employee of
the licensee, the level of authority of the individual who caused
the violation;
(10) If the individual who caused the violation acted within
the scope of the individual's authority as granted by the
licensee;
(11) The adequacy of any training programs offered by the
licensee or the licensee's employer that were relevant to the
activity that resulted in the violation;
(12) If the licensee's action substantially deviated from
industry standards and customs;
(13) The extent to which the licensee cooperated with the
commission during the investigation of the violation;
(14) If the licensee has initiated remedial measures to
prevent similar violations;
(15) The magnitude of penalties imposed on other licensees
for similar violations;
(16) The proportionality of the penalty in relation to the
misconduct;
(17) The extent to which the amount of any fine imposed would
punish the licensee for the conduct and deter future violations;
(18) Any mitigating factors offered by the licensee; and
(19) Any other factors the commission considers relevant.
(C) 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.
(D)(1) For the purpose of conducting the hearing in an
adjudication under division (A) of this section, or 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, directed to the
sheriffs of the counties where such witnesses or papers, books,
and accounts are found and cause the deposition of any witness.
The subpoenas shall be served and returned in the same manner as
subpoenas in criminal cases are served and returned. The fees of
sheriffs shall be the same as those allowed by the court of common
pleas in criminal cases.
(2) 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.
(3) Witnesses shall be paid the fees and mileage provided for
in section 119.094 of the Revised Code.
(4) All fees and mileage expenses incurred at the request of
a party shall be paid in advance by the party.
(E) 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.
(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.
(G) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this chapter,
and except with respect to a casino operator, management company,
or holding company of or affiliated with a casino facility, the
executive director may issue an emergency order for the
suspension, limitation, or conditioning of any license,
registration, approval, or certificate issued, approved, granted,
or otherwise authorized by the commission under Chapter 3772. of
the Revised Code or the rules adopted thereunder, requiring the
inclusion of persons on the commission's exclusion list provided
for under section 3772.031 of the Revised Code and the rules
adopted thereunder, and requiring a casino facility not to pay a
licensee, registrant, or approved or certified person any
remuneration for services or any share of profits, income, or
accruals on that person's investment in the casino facility.
(1) An emergency order may be issued when the executive
director finds either of the following:
(a) A licensee, registrant, or approved or certified person
has been charged with a violation of any of the criminal laws of
this state, another state, or the federal government;
(b) Such an action is necessary to prevent a violation of
this chapter or a rule adopted thereunder.
(2) An emergency order issued under division (G) of this
section shall state the reasons for the commission's action, cite
the law or rule directly involved, and state that the party will
be afforded a hearing if the party requests it within thirty days
after the time of mailing or personal delivery of the order.
(3)(a) Not later than the next business day after the
issuance of the emergency order, the order shall be sent by
registered or certified mail, return receipt requested, to the
party at the party's last known mailing address appearing in the
commission's records or personally delivered at any time to the
party by an employee or agent of the commission.
(b) A copy of the order shall be mailed to the attorney or
other representative of record representing the party.
(c) If the order sent by registered or certified mail is
returned because the party fails to claim the order, the
commission shall send the order by ordinary mail to the party at
the party's last known address and shall obtain a certificate of
mailing. Service by ordinary mail is complete when the certificate
of mailing is obtained unless the order is returned showing
failure of delivery.
(d) If the order sent by registered, certified, or ordinary
mail is returned for failure of delivery, the commission shall
either make personal delivery of the order by an employee or agent
of the commission or cause a summary of the substantive provisions
of the order to be published once a week for three consecutive
weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the county where
the last known address of the party is located.
(i) Failure of delivery occurs only when a mailed order is
returned by the postal authorities marked undeliverable, address
or addressee unknown, or forwarding address unknown or expired.
(ii) When service is completed by publication, a proof of
publication affidavit, with the first publication of the summary
set forth in the affidavit, shall be mailed by ordinary mail to
the party at the party's last known address and the order shall be
deemed received as of the date of the last publication.
(e) Refusal of delivery of the order sent by mail or
personally delivered to the party is not failure of delivery and
service is deemed to be complete.
(4) The emergency order shall be effective immediately upon
service of the order on the party. The emergency order shall
remain effective until further order of the executive director or
the commission.
(5) The commission may, and if so requested by the person
affected by the emergency order shall, promptly conduct a hearing
in an adjudication under Chapter 119. of the Revised Code.
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 gaming and
skill-based amusement machines in accordance with this chapter and
Chapter 2915. of the Revised Code, 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 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 gaming, and skill-based amusement
machines. The executive director shall prepare and make available
to the commission each month a complete and accurate accounting of
gross casino 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, skill-based amusement machine
operator, holding company, or gaming-related vendor;
(D) 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 make available 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 as directed by 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 cause the
completed form and impression sheet to be forwarded 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.
For all criminal records checks conducted under this section,
the applicant for a casino operator, management company,
skill-based amusement machine operator, holding company,
gaming-related vendor, key employee, or casino gaming employee
license shall pay the fee charged by the bureau of criminal
identification and investigation or by a vendor approved by the
bureau to conduct a criminal records check based on the
applicant's fingerprints in accordance with division (A)(15) of
section 109.572 of the Revised Code. If the applicant for a key
employee or casino gaming employee license is applying at the
request of a casino operator, management company, skill-based
amusement machine operator, holding company, or gaming-related
vendor, the casino operator, management company,
skill-based
amusement machine operator, holding company, or gaming-related
vendor shall pay the fee charged for all criminal records checks
conducted under this section.
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 or
application for a license under this chapter.
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 may be found to be suitable
or qualified by the commission under this chapter and the rules
adopted under this chapter. An institutional investor 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
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
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 requesting information from or investigating the
suitability or qualifications of an institutional investor if:
(a) The commission becomes aware of facts or information that
may result in the institutional investor being found unsuitable or
disqualified; or
(b) The commission has any other reason to seek information
from the investor to determine whether it qualifies as an
institutional investor.
(5) If the commission finds an institutional investor to be
unsuitable or unqualified, the commission shall so notify the
investor and the casino operator, holding company, management
company, skill-based amusement machine operator, or gaming-related
vendor licensee in which the investor invested. The commission
shall allow the investor and the licensee a reasonable amount of
time, as specified by the commission on a case-by-case basis, to
cure the conditions that caused the commission to find the
investor unsuitable or unqualified. If during the specified period
of time the investor or the licensee does not or cannot cure the
conditions that caused the commission to find the investor
unsuitable or unqualified, the commission may allow the investor
or licensee more time to cure the conditions or the commission may
begin proceedings to deny, suspend, or revoke the license of the
casino operator, holding company, management company, skill-based
amusement machine operator, or gaming-related vendor in which the
investor invested or to deny any of the same the renewal of any
such license.
(6) A private licensee or holding company shall provide the
same information to the commission as a public company would
provide in a form 13d or form 13g filing to the securities and
exchange commission.
(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.
(G) The commission shall provide a written statement to each
applicant for a license under this chapter who is denied the
license that describes the reason or reasons for which the
applicant was denied the license.
(H) Not later than January 31 in each calendar year, the
commission shall provide to the general assembly and the governor
a report that, for each type of license issued under this chapter,
specifies the number of applications made in the preceding
calendar year for each type of such license, the number of
applications denied in the preceding calendar year for each type
of such license, and the reasons for those denials. The
information regarding the reasons for the denials shall specify
each reason that resulted in, or that was a factor resulting in,
denial for each type of license issued under this chapter and, for
each of those reasons, the total number of denials for each such
type that involved that reason.
Sec. 3772.12. (A) A person may apply for a gaming-related
vendor license. All applications shall be made under oath.
(B) A person who holds a gaming-related vendor's license is
authorized to sell or, lease, or otherwise provide, and to
contract to sell or, lease, or otherwise provide, equipment,
goods, and supplies services to any licensee involved in the
ownership or management of a casino facility or skill-based
amusement machine operator facility.
(C) Gambling supplies and Casino gaming and skill-based
amusement machine equipment and goods shall not be distributed in
this state unless supplies and the equipment and goods conform to
standards adopted in rules adopted by the commission.
Sec. 3772.121. (A) The commission may issue a gaming-related
vendor's license under this chapter to an applicant who has:
(1) Applied for the gaming-related vendor's license;
(2) Paid a nonrefundable license fee as described in section
3772.17 of the Revised Code, which shall cover all actual costs
generated by each licensee and all background checks;
(3) Submitted two sets of the applicant's fingerprints; and
(4) Been determined by the commission as eligible for a
gaming-related vendor's license.
(B) A gaming-related vendor shall furnish to the commission a
list of all equipment, devices goods, and supplies services
offered for sale or, lease, or otherwise provided in connection
with casino games authorized under this chapter or skill-based
amusement machines authorized under this chapter and Chapter 2915.
of the Revised Code.
(C) 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 state.
Sec. 3772.14. (A) A person may apply for a skill-based
amusement machine operator license. All applications shall be made
under oath and be on a form prescribed by and contain all of the
information required by the commission.
(B) The commission may issue a skill-based amusement machine
operator license under this chapter to an applicant who has done
all of the following:
(1) Applied for the skill-based amusement machine operator
license;
(2) Paid a nonrefundable license fee as described in section
3772.17 of the Revised Code;
(3) Submitted two sets of the applicant's fingerprints; and
(4) Been determined by the commission to be eligible for a
skill-based amusement machine operator license.
(C) A person who holds a skill-based amusement machine
operator license may offer skill-based amusement machines at a
location approved by the commission and as authorized by this
chapter and the rules adopted thereunder and by Chapter 2915. of
the Revised Code and as approved by the commission.
(D) A skill-based amusement machine operator shall only
purchase, lease, or otherwise acquire or obtain skill-based
amusement machine equipment, goods, and services from a
gaming-related vendor licensed under this chapter.
(E) Upon written request from and good cause shown, as
determined by the commission, by a person that is required to
apply for and obtain a skill-based amusement machine operator
license under this chapter, the commission may grant a waiver or
variance from one or more of the skill-based amusement machine
operator licensure requirements.
(1) A waiver or variance request submitted under this
division shall contain all of the following:
(a) The requestor's name, mailing address, telephone number,
facsimile number, and electronic mail address, as available;
(b) A contact person and that person's mailing address,
telephone number, facsimile number, and electronic mail address,
as available;
(c) A detailed description of the specific requirement or
requirements that the requestor is seeking to have waived or to
vary from and the reason or reasons justifying the request;
(d) The requestor's signature or the signature of a duly
authorized agent, employee, or representative of the requestor;
and
(e) Any other information required by the commission.
(2) The commission may consider any properly submitted waiver
or variance request at a meeting held under section 3772.02 of the
Revised Code or designate such responsibility to the commission
chairperson or the executive director. If such a designation
occurs, the commission chairperson or the executive director shall
provide a written response to the requestor indicating whether the
waiver or variance has been granted or denied.
(3) The commission, or the commission chairperson or
executive director, if designated, shall retain sole authority to
grant or deny a waiver or variance request submitted under this
division. The request may be denied for any reason except that no
denial under this division shall be done in an arbitrary or
capricious manner.
(4) Denial of any waiver or variance request submitted under
this division shall not require notice and an opportunity for
hearing nor shall it be considered an adjudication or final
appealable order for purposes of Chapter 119. or section 2505.03
of the Revised Code.
Sec. 3772.15. (A) Unless a license issued under this chapter
is suspended, expires, or is revoked, the license shall be renewed
for three years, as determined by commission rule, after a
determination by the commission that the licensee is in compliance
with this chapter and rules authorized by this chapter and after
the licensee pays a fee. The commission may assess the license
renewal applicant a reasonable fee in the an amount set by rule
that is necessary to cover the commission's costs associated with
the review of the license renewal application.
(B) A licensee shall undergo a complete investigation at
least every three years, as determined by commission rule, to
determine that the licensee remains in compliance with this
chapter or Chapter 2915. of the Revised Code.
(C) Notwithstanding division (B) of this section, the
commission may investigate a licensee at any time the commission
determines it is necessary to ensure that the licensee remains in
compliance with this section.
(D) The holder of a license shall bear the cost of an
investigation, except key employees that are employed by a casino
operator, management company, skill-based amusement machine
operator, holding company, or gaming-related vendor and casino
gaming employees who are employed by a casino operator or
management company, in which case the casino operator employer
shall pay the investigation cost.
Sec. 3772.17. (A) The upfront license fee to obtain a license
as a casino operator shall be fifty million dollars per casino
facility and shall be paid upon each casino operator's filing of
its casino operator license application with the commission. The
upfront license fee, once paid to the commission, shall be
deposited into the economic development programs fund, which is
created in the state treasury.
(B) New License and renewal license fees for a new casino
operator, management company, and holding company license and
renewal license fees of or affiliated with a casino facility shall
be set by rule, subject to the review of the joint committee on
gaming and wagering. If an applicant for a license as a management
company or holding company is related through a joint venture or
controlled by or under common control with another applicant for a
license as a casino operator, management company, or holding
company for the same casino facility and the applicant for a
license as a management company or holding company was reviewed
for suitability as part of the investigation of the casino
operator, only one license fee shall be assessed against both
applicants for that casino facility.
(C) 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 for a casino operator, management company, or
holding company license may be increased to the extent that the
actual review and investigation costs relating to an applicant
exceed the application fee set forth in this division. If an
applicant for a license as a management company or holding company
is related through a joint venture or controlled by or under
common control with another applicant for a license as a casino
operator, management company, or holding company for the same
casino facility, with the exception of actual costs of the review
and investigation of the additional applicant, only one
application fee shall be required of such applicants for that
casino facility. The application fee shall be deposited into the
casino control commission fund. The application fee is
nonrefundable.
(D) The license fees for a skill-based amusement machine
operator shall be set by rule, subject to review by 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 application.
(E) 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.
(E)(F) 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.
(F)(G) 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.
Sec. 3772.21. (A) Casino gaming or skill-based amusement
machine equipment, goods, and supplies customarily used in
conducting casino gaming services shall only be purchased or,
leased only, or otherwise acquired or obtained 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) A licensed gaming-related vendor shall provide only
casino gaming and skill-based amusement machine equipment, goods,
and services that have been approved by the commission.
(C) Annually, a gaming-related vendor shall furnish to the
commission a list of all equipment, devices, and supplies offered
for sale or, lease, or are otherwise offered in connection with
casino gaming authorized under this chapter and skill-based
amusement machines authorized under this chapter and Chapter 2915.
of the Revised Code.
(C)(D) A gaming-related vendor shall keep books and records
for the furnishing of equipment, devices, and supplies to casino
gaming and skill-based amusement machine 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 goods.
(D)(E) A gaming-related vendor's equipment, devices, or
supplies goods that are used by a person in an unauthorized casino
gaming or skill-based amusement machine operation shall be
forfeited to the commission.
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 may provide
promotional gaming credits to their patrons. Promotional gaming
credits shall be subject to oversight by the commission.
(C) Casino operators and, management companies, and
skill-based amusement machine 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. 3772.31. (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 gaming
authorized under this chapter and all skill-based amusement
machines authorized under this chapter and Chapter 2915. of the
Revised Code. The commission shall not require use of a central
system by a casino operator, management company, or skill-based
amusement machine operator if the casino operator, management
company, or skill-based amusement machine operator is in
compliance with this chapter or Chapter 2915. of the Revised Code,
as applicable. If the commission determines, after written notice
to the casino operator, management company, or skill-based
amusement machine operator and a hearing under section 3772.04 of
the Revised Code, that a casino operator, management company, or
skill-based amusement machine operator is not in compliance with
this chapter or Chapter 2915. of the Revised Code, as applicable,
the commission may determine it is necessary to require the casino
operator, management company, or skill-based amusement machine
operator to install and implement a central system under such
conditions as the commission may require. Before any such hearing,
the commission shall provide the casino operator party with
written notice that the casino operator party is not in compliance
with a specific requirement of this chapter or Chapter 2915. of
the Revised Code, as applicable, describe the requirement, and
provide the casino operator party at least thirty days to cure the
noncompliance or, if the cure cannot be reasonably rectified
within thirty days, require the casino operator party to
demonstrate to the commission's satisfaction that the casino
operator party is diligently pursuing the required cure. 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 or
management companies shall be responsible for the costs of the
central system as it relates to casino facilities and skill-based
amusement machine operators shall be responsible for the costs of
the central system as it relates to skill-based amusement
machines.
(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 and all skill-based
amusement machines and related equipment and goods for compliance
with this chapter and Chapter 2915. of the Revised Code. 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 Chapter 2915. of the Revised
Code, as applicable, 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. 3772.99. (A) The commission shall levy and collect
penalties for noncriminal violations of this chapter. Noncriminal
violations include using the term "casino" in any advertisement in
regard to a facility operating video lottery terminals, as defined
in section 3770.21 of the Revised Code, in this state. 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 or management company or the skill-based
amusement machine operations of a skill-based amusement machine
operator;
(2) Require the removal of a management company, key
employee, or discontinuance of services from a gaming-related
vendor.
(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 purposely or 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 at a casino facility;
(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) Is a casino operator or employee and participates in
casino gaming other than as part of operation or employment.
(E) A person who purposely or 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) Uses or possesses with the intent to use a device to
assist in projecting the outcome of the casino 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 casino game, except as
permitted by the commission;
(2) Cheats at a casino game;
(3) Manufactures, sells, or distributes any cards, chips,
dice, game, or device that is intended to be used to violate this
chapter;
(4) Alters or misrepresents the outcome of a casino game on
which wagers have been made after the outcome is made sure but
before the outcome is revealed to the players;
(5) Places, increases, or decreases a wager on the outcome of
a casino game 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;
(6) Aids a person in acquiring the knowledge described in
division (E)(5) of this section for the purpose of placing,
increasing, or decreasing a wager contingent on the outcome of a
casino game;
(7) Claims, collects, takes, or attempts to claim, collect,
or take money or anything of value in or from a casino game with
the intent to defraud or without having made a wager contingent on
winning a casino game;
(8) Claims, collects, or takes an amount of money or thing of
value of greater value than the amount won in a casino game;
(9) Uses or possesses counterfeit chips, tokens, or cashless
wagering instruments in or for use in a casino game;
(10) Possesses a key or device designed for opening,
entering, or affecting the operation of a casino game, skill-based
amusement machine, drop box, or an electronic or a mechanical
device connected with the casino game or skill-based amusement
machine or removing coins, tokens, chips, or other contents of a
casino game or skill-based amusement machine. This division does
not apply to a casino operator, management company, skill-based
amusement machine operator, or gaming-related vendor or their
agents and employees in the course of agency or employment.
(11) Possesses materials used to manufacture a device
intended to be used in a manner that violates this chapter or
Chapter 2915. of the Revised Code;
(12) 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 or a skill-based amusement machine
operation in a manner other than the manner required under this
chapter or Chapter 2915. of the Revised Code.
(F) The possession of more than one of the devices described
in division (E)(9), (10), or (11) of this section creates a
rebuttable presumption that the possessor intended to use the
devices for cheating.
(G) A person who purposely or knowingly or intentionally does
any of the following commits a felony of the third degree. If the
person is a licensee under this chapter, the commission shall
revoke the person's license after the first offense. A public
servant or party official who is convicted under this division is
forever disqualified from holding any public office, employment,
or position of trust in this state.
(1) Offers, promises, or gives anything of value or benefit
to a person who is connected with the casino operator, management
company, skill-based amusement machine operator, holding company,
or gaming-related vendor, 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 or skill-based amusement machine or an official action
of a commission member, agent, or employee;
(2) Solicits, accepts, or receives a promise of anything of
value or benefit while the person is connected with a casino
facility or skill-based amusement machine, including an officer or
employee of a casino operator, management company, skill-based
amusement machine operator, or gaming-related vendor, 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 or skill-based amusement machine or an official action
of a commission member, agent, or employee;
(H) 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 facility by the commission.
Section 2. That existing sections 119.12, 2915.01, 2915.03,
2915.06, 2915.061, 3770.01, 3770.02, 3770.05, 3772.01, 3772.02,
3772.03, 3772.032, 3772.033, 3772.04, 3772.06, 3772.07, 3772.10,
3772.12, 3772.121, 3772.15, 3772.17, 3772.21, 3772.23, 3772.31,
and 3772.99 of the Revised Code are hereby repealed.
Section 3. Section 3772.10 of the Revised Code is presented
in this act as a composite of the section as amended by both Am.
Sub. H.B. 386 and Am. Sub. S.B. 337 of the 129th General Assembly.
The General Assembly, applying the principle stated in division
(B) of section 1.52 of the Revised Code that amendments are to be
harmonized if reasonably capable of simultaneous operation, finds
that the composite is the resulting version of the section in
effect prior to the effective date of the section as presented in
this act.
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