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(A) No charitable organization that conducts bingo shall fail to do any of the following:
(1) Own all of the equipment used to conduct bingo or lease that equipment from a charitable organization that is licensed to conduct bingo, or from the landlord of a premises where bingo is conducted, for a rental rate that is not more than is customary and reasonable for that equipment;
(2) Except as otherwise provided in division (A)(3) of this section, use all of the gross receipts from bingo for paying prizes, for reimbursement of expenses for or for renting premises in which to conduct bingo, for reimbursement of expenses for or for purchasing or leasing bingo supplies used in conducting bingo, for reimbursement of expenses for or for hiring security personnel, for reimbursement of expenses for or for advertising bingo, or for reimbursement of other expenses or for other expenses listed in the definition for “expenses” in R.C. § 2915.01, provided that the amount of the receipts so spent is not more than is customary and reasonable for a similar purchase, lease, hiring, advertising, or expense. If the building in which bingo is conducted is owned by the charitable organization conducting bingo and the bingo conducted includes a form of bingo described in division (1) of the definition of “bingo” in R.C. § 2915.01, the charitable organization may deduct from the total amount of the gross receipts from each session a sum equal to the lesser of $600 or 45% of the gross receipts from the bingo described in that division as consideration for the use of the premises;
(3) Use, or give, donate, or otherwise transfer, all of the net profit derived from bingo described in R.C. § 2915.01(O)(1) for a charitable purpose listed in its license application and described in R.C. § 2915.01(V), or distribute all of the net profit from the proceeds of the sale of instant bingo or electronic instant bingo as stated in its license application and in accordance with R.C. § 2915.101, as applicable.
(B) No charitable organization that conducts a bingo game described in division (1) of the definition of “bingo” in R.C. § 2915.01 shall fail to do any of the following:
(1) Conduct the bingo game on premises that are owned by the charitable organization, on premises that are owned by another charitable organization and leased from that charitable organization for a rental rate not in excess of the lesser of $650 per bingo session or 45% of the gross receipts of the bingo session, on premises that are leased from a person other than a charitable organization for a rental rate that is not more than is customary and reasonable for premises that are similar in location, size, and quality but not in excess of $450 per bingo session, or on premises that are owned by a person other than a charitable organization, that are leased from that person by another charitable organization, and that are subleased from that other charitable organization by the charitable organization for a rental rate not in excess of $450 per bingo session. No charitable organization is required to pay property taxes or assessments on premises that the charitable organization leases from another person to conduct bingo sessions. If the charitable organization leases from a person other than a charitable organization the premises on which it conducts bingo sessions, the lessor of the premises shall provide only the premises to the organization and shall not provide the organization with bingo game operators, security personnel, concessions or concession operators, bingo supplies, or any other type of service. A charitable organization shall not lease or sublease premises that it owns or leases to more than three other charitable organizations per calendar week for conducting bingo sessions on the premises. A person that is not a charitable organization shall not lease premises that it owns, leases, or otherwise is empowered to lease to more than three charitable organizations per calendar week for conducting bingo sessions on the premises. In no case shall more than nine bingo sessions be conducted on any premises in any calendar week;
(2) Display its license conspicuously at the premises where the bingo session is conducted;
(3) Conduct the bingo session in accordance with division (1) of the definition of “bingo” in R.C. § 2915.01.
(C) No charitable organization that conducts a bingo game described in division (1) of the definition of “bingo” in R.C. § 2915.01 shall do any of the following:
(1) Pay any compensation to a bingo game operator for operating a bingo session that is conducted by the charitable organization or for preparing, selling, or serving food or beverages at the site of the bingo session, permit any auxiliary unit or society of the charitable organization to pay compensation to any bingo game operator who prepares, sells, or serves food or beverages at a bingo session conducted by the charitable organization, or permit any auxiliary unit or society of the charitable organization to prepare, sell, or serve food or beverages at a bingo session conducted by the charitable organization, if the auxiliary unit or society pays any compensation to the bingo game operators who prepare, sell, or serve the food or beverages;
(2) Pay consulting fees to any person for any services performed in relation to the bingo session;
(3) Pay concession fees to any person who provides refreshments to the participants in the bingo session;
(4) Except as otherwise provided in division (C)(4) of this section, conduct more than three bingo sessions in any seven-day period. A volunteer firefighter’s organization or a volunteer rescue service organization that conducts not more than five bingo sessions in a calendar year may conduct more than three bingo sessions in a seven-day period after notifying the Attorney General when it will conduct the sessions;
(5) Pay out more than $6,000 in prizes for bingo games described in R.C. § 2915.01(S)(1) during any bingo session that is conducted by the charitable organization. “Prizes” does not include awards from the conduct of instant bingo.
(6) Conduct a bingo session at any time during the eight-hour period between 2:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m., at any time during, or within ten hours of, a bingo game conducted for amusement only pursuant to R.C. § 2915.12 or any substantially equivalent municipal ordinance, at any premises not specified on its license, or on any day of the week or during any time period not specified on its license. This division does not prohibit the sale of instant bingo tickets beginning at 9:00 a.m. for a bingo session that begins at 10:00 a.m. If circumstances make it impractical for the charitable organization to conduct a bingo session at the premises, or on the day of the week or at the time specified on its license or if a 168 charitable organization wants to conduct bingo sessions on a day of the week or at a time other than the day or time specified on its license, the charitable organization may apply in writing to the Attorney General for an amended license pursuant to R.C.§ 2915.08(J). A charitable organization may apply twice in each calendar year for an amended license to conduct bingo sessions on a day of the week or at a time other than the day or time specified on its license. If the amended license is granted, the organization may conduct bingo sessions at the premises, on the day of the week, and at the time specified on its amended license;
(7) Permit any person whom the charitable organization knows, or should have known, is under the age of 18 to work as a bingo game operator;
(8) Permit any person whom the charitable organization knows, or should have known, has been convicted of a felony or gambling offense in any jurisdiction to be a bingo game operator;
(9) Permit the lessor of the premises on which the bingo session is conducted, if the lessor is not a charitable organization, to provide the charitable organization with bingo game operators, security personnel, concessions, bingo supplies, or any other type of service;
(10) Purchase or lease bingo supplies from any person except a distributor issued a license under R.C. § 2915.081;
(11) (a) Use or permit the use of electronic bingo aids except under the following circumstances:
1. For any single participant, not more than 90 bingo faces can be played using an electronic bingo aid or aids.
2. The charitable organization shall provide a participant using an electronic bingo aid with corresponding paper bingo cards or sheets.
3. The total price of bingo faces played with an electronic bingo aid shall be equal to the total price of the same number of bingo faces played with a paper bingo card or sheet sold at the same bingo session but without an electronic bingo aid.
4. An electronic bingo aid cannot be part of an electronic network other than a network that includes only bingo aids and devices that are located on the premises at which the bingo is being conducted or be interactive with any device not located on the premises at which the bingo is being conducted.
5. An electronic bingo aid cannot be used to participate in bingo that is conducted at a location other than the location at which the bingo session is conducted and at which the electronic bingo aid is used.
6. An electronic bingo aid cannot be used to provide for the input of numbers and letters announced by a bingo caller other than the bingo caller who physically calls the numbers and letters at the location at which the bingo session is conducted and at which the electronic bingo aid is used.
(b) The Attorney General may adopt rules in accordance with R.C. Chapter 119 that govern the use of electronic bingo aids. The rules may include a requirement that an electronic bingo aid be capable of being audited by the Attorney General to verify the number of bingo cards or sheets played during each bingo session.
(12) Permit any person the charitable organization knows, or should have known, to be under 18 years of age to play bingo described in division (1) of the definition of “bingo” in R.C. § 2915.01.
(D) (1) Except as otherwise provided in division (D)(3) of this section, no charitable organization shall provide to a bingo game operator, and no bingo game operator shall receive or accept, any commission, wage, salary, reward, tip, donation, gratuity, or other form of compensation, directly or indirectly, regardless of the source, for conducting bingo or providing other work or labor at the site of bingo during a bingo session.
(2) Except as otherwise provided in division (D)(3) of this section, no charitable organization shall provide to a bingo game operator any commission, wage, salary, reward, tip, donation, gratuity, or other form of compensation, directly or indirectly regardless of the source, for conducting instant bingo, electronic instant bingo, or both other than at a bingo session at the site of instant bingo, electronic instant bingo, or both other than at a bingo session.
(3) Nothing in this division (D) of this section prohibits an employee of a fraternal organization, veteran’s organization, or sporting organization from selling instant bingo tickets or cards to the organization’s members or invited guests, as long as no portion of the employee’s compensation is paid from any receipts of bingo.
(E) Notwithstanding division (B)(1) of this section, a charitable organization that, prior to December 6, 1977, has entered into written agreements for the lease of premises it owns to another charitable organization or other charitable organizations for the conducting of bingo sessions so that more than two bingo sessions are conducted per calendar week on the premises, and a person that is not a charitable organization and that, prior to December 6, 1977, has entered into written agreements for the lease of premises it owns to charitable organizations for the conducting of more than two bingo sessions per calendar week on the premises, may continue to lease the premises to those charitable organizations, provided that no more than four sessions are conducted per calendar week, that the lessor organization or person has notified the Attorney General in writing of the organizations that will conduct the sessions and the days of the week and the times of the day on which the sessions will be conducted, that the initial lease entered into with each organization that will conduct the sessions was filed with the Attorney General prior to December 6, 1977, and that each organization that will conduct the sessions was issued a license to conduct bingo games by the Attorney General prior to December 6, 1977.
(F) This section does not prohibit a bingo licensed charitable organization or a game operator from giving any person an instant bingo ticket as a prize.
(G) Whoever violates division (A)(2) of this section is guilty of illegally conducting a bingo game, a felony to be prosecuted under appropriate state law. Except as otherwise provided in this division, whoever violates division (A)(1), (A)(3), (B)(1), (B)(2), (B)(3), (C)(1) through (C)(11), or (D) of this section is guilty of a minor misdemeanor. If the offender previously has been convicted of a violation of division (A)(1), (A)(3), (B)(1), (B)(2), (B)(3), (C)(1) through (C)(11), or (D) of this section, a violation of division (A)(1), (A)(3), (B)(1), (B)(2), (B)(3), (C)(1) through (C)(11), or (D) of this section is a misdemeanor of the first degree. Whoever violates division (C)(12) of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor of the first degree. If the offender previously has been convicted of a violation of division (C)(12) of this section, a violation of division (C)(12) of this section is a felony to be prosecuted under appropriate state law.
(R.C. § 2915.09)
(A) No charitable organization that conducts bingo or a game of chance pursuant to R.C. § 2915.02(D), or any substantially equivalent municipal ordinance, shall fail to maintain the following records for at least three years from the date on which the bingo or game of chance is conducted:
(1) An itemized list of the gross receipts of each bingo session, each game of instant bingo by serial number, each electronic instant bingo game by serial number, each raffle, each punch board game, and each game of chance, and an itemized list of the gross profits of each game of instant bingo by serial number and each electronic instant bingo game by serial number;
(2) An itemized list of all expenses, other than prizes, that are incurred in conducting bingo, the name of each person to whom the expenses are paid, and a receipt for all of the expenses;
(3) A list of all prizes awarded during each bingo session, each raffle, each punch board game, and each game of chance conducted by the charitable organization, the total prizes awarded from each game of instant bingo by serial number and each electronic instant bingo game by serial number, and the name, address, and social security number of all persons who are winners of prizes of $600 or more in value;
(4) An itemized list of the recipients of the net profit of bingo or game of chance, including the name and address of each recipient to whom the money is distributed, and if the organization uses the net profit of bingo, or the money or assets received from a game of chance, for any charitable or other purpose set forth in R.C. § 2915.01(V), R.C. § 2915.02(D), or R.C. § 2915.101, a list of each purpose and an itemized list of each expenditure for each purpose;
(5) The number of persons who participate in any bingo session or game of chance that is conducted by the charitable organization;
(6) A list of receipts from the sale of food and beverages by the charitable organization or one of its auxiliary units or societies, if the receipts were excluded from “gross receipts” under R.C. § 2915.01(T);
(7) An itemized list of all expenses incurred at each bingo session, each raffle, each punch board game, or each game of instant bingo or electronic instant bingo conducted by the charitable organization in the sale of food and beverages by the charitable organization or by an auxiliary unit or society of the charitable organization, the name of each person to whom the expenses are paid, and a receipt for all of the expenses.
(B) A charitable organization shall keep the records that it is required to maintain pursuant to division (A) of this section at its principal place of business in this state or at its headquarters in this state and shall notify the Attorney General of the location at which those records are kept.
(C) The gross profit from each bingo session or game described in division (1) or (2) of the definition of “bingo” in R.C. § 2915.01 shall be deposited into a checking account devoted exclusively to the bingo session or game. Payments for allowable expenses incurred in conducting the bingo session or game and payments to recipients of some or all of the net profit of the bingo session or game shall be made only by checks or electronic fund transfers drawn on the bingo session or game account.
(D) Each charitable organization shall conduct and record an inventory of all of its bingo supplies as of the first day of November of each year.
(E) The Attorney General may adopt rules in accordance with R.C. Chapter 119 that establish standards of accounting, record keeping, and reporting to ensure that gross receipts from bingo or games of chance are properly accounted for.
(F) A distributor shall maintain, for a period of three years after the date of its sale or other provision, a record of each instance of its selling or otherwise providing to another person bingo supplies for use in this state. The record shall include all of the following for each instance:
(1) The name of the manufacturer from which the distributor purchased the bingo supplies and the date of the purchase;
(2) The name and address of the charitable organization or other distributor to which the bingo supplies were sold or otherwise provided;
(3) A description that clearly identifies the bingo supplies;
(4) Invoices that include the nonrepeating serial numbers of all paper bingo cards and sheets and all instant bingo deals sold or otherwise provided to each charitable organization.
(G) A manufacturer shall maintain, for a period of three years after the date of its sale or other provision, a record of each instance of its selling or otherwise providing bingo supplies for use in this state. The record shall include all of the following for each instance:
(1) The name and address of the distributor to whom the bingo supplies were sold or otherwise provided;
(2) A description that clearly identifies the bingo supplies, including serial numbers;
(3) Invoices that include the nonrepeating serial numbers of all paper bingo cards and sheets and all instant bingo deals sold or otherwise provided to each distributor.
(H) (1) The Attorney General or any law enforcement agency may do all of the following:
(a) Investigate any charitable organization, distributor, or manufacturer or any officer, agent, trustee, member, or employee of the organization, distributor, or manufacturer;
(b) Examine the accounts and records of the charitable organization, distributor, or manufacturer or of any officer, agent, trustee, member, or employee of the organization, distributor, or manufacturer;
(c) Conduct inspections, audits, and observations of bingo or games of chance;
(d) Conduct inspections of the premises where bingo or games of chance are conducted or where bingo supplies are manufactured or distributed;
(e) Take any other necessary and reasonable action to determine if a violation of any provision of this chapter or R.C. Chapter 2915 has occurred and to determine whether R.C. § 2915.11, or any substantially equivalent municipal ordinance, has been complied with.
(2) If any law enforcement agency has reasonable grounds to believe that a charitable organization, distributor, or manufacturer or an officer, agent, trustee, member, or employee of the organization, distributor, or manufacturer has violated any provision of this chapter or R.C. Chapter 2915, the law enforcement agency may proceed by action in the proper court to enforce this chapter or R.C. Chapter 2915, provided that the law enforcement agency shall give written notice to the Attorney General when commencing an action as described in this division.
(I) No person shall destroy, alter, conceal, withhold, or deny access to any accounts or records of a charitable organization, distributor, or manufacturer that have been requested for examination, or obstruct, impede, or interfere with any inspection, audit, or observation of bingo or a game of chance, of premises where bingo or a game of chance is conducted, or of premises where bingo supplies are manufactured or distributed, or refuse to comply with any reasonable request of, or obstruct, impede, or interfere with any other reasonable action undertaken by, the Attorney General or a law enforcement agency pursuant to division (H) of this section.
(J) Whoever violates division (A) or (I) of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor of the first degree.
(R.C. § 2915.10)
(A) No person shall be a bingo game operator unless the person is 18 years of age or older.
(B) No person who has been convicted of a felony or a gambling offense in any jurisdiction shall be a bingo game operator.
(C) Whoever violates division (A) of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor of the third degree. Whoever violates division (B) of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor of the first degree.
(R.C. § 2915.11)
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