Alaska Charitable Gaming Laws

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Chapter 15. Games of Chance and Contests of Skill

Sec. 05.15.690 Definitions.

In this chapter,

(1) “adjusted gross income ” means gross income less prizes awarded and state, federal, and municipal taxes paid or owed on the income;

(2) “animal classic ” means a game of chance in which prizes are awarded for the correct guess

(A) of which numbered or colored hole on a wheel a rat, hamster, gerbil, or other rodent enters as the wheel is slowly rotated;

(B) concerning an activity involving chicken manure and a numbered or lettered grid.

(3) “authorizing permittee ” means a municipality or qualified organization that authorizes an operator to conduct an activity subject to this chapter on its behalf;

(4) “bingo” means a game of chance of, and restricted to, the selling of rights to participate, and the awarding of prizes, in the specific kind of game of chance sometimes known as bingo or lotto, played with cards bearing numbers or other designations, five or more in one line, the holder covering numbers when objects similarly numbered are drawn from a receptacle, and the game being won by the person who first covers a previously designated arrangement of numbers on the card;

(5) “cabbage classic” means a game of chance where a prize of money is awarded for the closest guess of the weight of the winning cabbage at the Giant Cabbage Weigh-Off at the Alaska State Fair in Palmer operated and administered by the Palmer Rotary Club;

(6) “Calcutta pool” means a game of chance where a prize of money is awarded from a pool of wagers on a contest of skill limited to amateur and professional sporting events, other than horse racing, in the state in which those who wager bid at auction for the exclusive right to purchase or wager upon a particular contestant or entrant in the event;

(7) “canned salmon classic” means a game of chance where a prize of money is awarded to the closest guess of the total number of cases of canned salmon that will be packed at the Petersburg salmon canneries during a certain period of time and is limited to the canned salmon classic operated and administered by the Petersburg Chamber of Commerce;

(8) “charitable organization” means an organization, not for pecuniary profit, that is operated for the relief of poverty, distress, or other condition of public concern in the state;

(9) “civic or service organization” means any branch or lodge or chapter of a national or state organization that is a civic or service organization, not for pecuniary profit, and authorized by its written constitution, charter, or articles of incorporation, or bylaws to engage in a fraternal, civic, or service purpose in the state;

(10) “contest of skill” means a contest or game in which prizes are awarded for the demonstration of human skills in marksmanship, races, and other athletic events;

(11) “crane classic” means a game of chance in which a prize of money is awarded for the closest guess of the time of arrival of the first sandhill crane to a particular place;

(12) “deep freeze classic” means a game of chance where a prize of money is awarded to the closest guess of the date, time, and temperature of the lowest temperature recorded at a specific location in the Delta Junction area on the coldest day during December through February, inclusive, and is limited to the deep freeze classic operated and administered by the Delta Chamber of Commerce;

(13) “department” means the Department of Revenue;

(14) “distribute” means sell, distribute, furnish, or supply;

(15) “dog mushers’ association” means a civic, service, or charitable organization in the state, not for pecuniary profit, formed exclusively to promote interest in the breeding and training of dog teams for work or recreational and racing purposes, but does not include an organization formed or operated for gaming or gambling purposes;

(16) “dog mushers’ contest” means a (A) contest in which prizes are awarded for the correct guess of the racing time of a dog team or of team position in the race, including prizes to the race contestants; or (B) a game of chance, conducted by a dog mushers’ association, in which a prize of money is awarded for the closest guess or guesses of at least three elements of uncertainty about a sled dog race that cannot be determined before the commencement of the race; of the three elements of uncertainty, one element must be identified as the primary determinant of success, with the other two elements being used as secondary and tertiary determinants if there are multiple correct guesses of the primary determinant;

(17) “educational organization” means a civic, service, or charitable organization in the state, not for pecuniary profit, whose primary purpose is educational in nature and designed to develop the capabilities of individuals by instruction;

(18) “established village” means an unincorporated community that is in (A) the unorganized borough and that has 25 or more permanent residents; or (B) an organized borough, has 25 or more permanent residents; and (i) is on a road system and is located more than 50 miles outside the boundary limits of a unified municipality; or (ii) is not on a road system and is located more than 15 miles outside the boundary limits of a unified municipality;

(19) “fishing derby association” means a civic, service, or charitable organization in the state, not for pecuniary profit, whose primary purpose is to promote interest in fishing for recreational purposes, but does not include an organization formed or operated for gaming or gambling purposes;

(20) “fish derby” means a contest in which prizes are awarded for catching fish;

(21) “fraternal organization” means a civic, service, or charitable organization in the state, except a college and high school fraternity, not for pecuniary profit, that is a branch or lodge or chapter, of a national or state organization and exists for the common business, brotherhood, or other interest of its members;

(22) “fund raiser or consultant” means a person who provides advice or technical assistance in support of or concerning the conduct of gaming activities under this chapter, whether the person is or is not an employee of a licensee;

(23) “goose classic” means a game of chance where a prize of money is awarded for the closest guess of the time of the arrival of the first goose in spring to Creamer’s Field in Fairbanks or to the Kenai River Flats near Kenai and is limited to the goose classics operated and administered (A) jointly or by either the Fairbanks Montessori Association or the Friends of Creamer’s Field; and (B) by the Kenai Chamber of Commerce;

(24) “governing body” has the meaning given in AS 29.71.800 ;

(25) “gross receipts” means receipts from the sale of shares, tickets, or rights connected with participation in any activity permitted under this chapter or the right to participate, including admission, fee or charge, sale of equipment or supplies, and all other miscellaneous receipts;

(26) “ice classic” means a game of chance where a prize of money is awarded for the closest guess of the time the ice moves in a body of water or watercourse in the state and is limited to the Nenana and Chena Ice Pools in the same manner as they were conducted in 1959 and previous years, a Kuskokwim Ice Classic to be operated and administered by Bethel Community Services Foundation, Inc., a Kenai River Ice Classic to be operated and administered by the Kenai and Soldotna Rotary Clubs jointly or by either the Kenai Rotary Club or the Soldotna Rotary Club, a Yukon River Ice Classic to be operated and administered by the City of Fort Yukon, an Alaska-Soviet Ice Classic to be operated and administered jointly by CAMAI, Inc., and the City of Diomede, a Big Lake Ice Classic to be operated and administered by the Houston Junior-Senior High School Booster Club and the Big Lake Chamber of Commerce jointly or by either the Houston Junior-Senior High School Booster Club or the Big Lake Chamber of Commerce, and a McGrath Ice Classic to be operated and administered by the Kuskokwim Public Broadcasting Company;

(27) “ideal net” means an amount equal to the total amount of receipts that would be received if every individual pull-tab ticket in a series were sold at face value, less the prizes to be awarded for that series;

(28) “king salmon classic” means a game of chance where a prize of money is awarded for the closest guess of the time of the arrival of the first king salmon of the year at a designated spot on the fish ladder in the Douglas Island Pink and Chum hatchery at Salmon Creek in Juneau and is limited to the king salmon classic operated and administered by the Greater Juneau Chamber of Commerce;

(29) “labor organization” means an organization, not for pecuniary profit, constituted wholly or partly to bargain collectively or deal with employers, including the state and its political subdivisions, concerning grievances, terms, or conditions of employment or other mutual aid or protection in connection with employees;

(30) “managerial or supervisory capacity” means that the employee (A) is responsible for gaming receipts; (B) has the authority to hire employees or to dismiss or otherwise discipline them; (C) prepares financial reports required under this chapter; (D) is responsible for keeping the accounts for activities under this chapter; (E) is responsible for conducting activities under this chapter, including the arranging for locations at which those activities will occur; or (F) is a fund raiser or a consultant;

(31) “mercury classic” means a game of chance where a prize of money is awarded for the closest guess of the time the temperature reaches a certain degree and is limited to the (A) Homer Mercury Classic operated and administered by the Boys and Girls Club of the Kenai Peninsula; and (B) mercury classic operated and administered by the Greater Fairbanks Chamber of Commerce or jointly, in the discretion of the Greater Fairbanks Chamber of Commerce, by the Greater Fairbanks Chamber of Commerce and the Fairbanks Convention and Visitors’ Bureau;

(32) “net proceeds” means the gross receipts from an authorized activity less the fee described in AS 05.15.020 (b), the expenses authorized by AS 05.15.160 , and the prizes awarded at the activity;

(33) “numbers wheel” means any electronic, mechanical, or other device with numbers or other figures that are selected randomly and used in a game of chance in which the outcome is determined by the number or figure selected by the device; not including games in which a hamster or other animal is placed in an enclosure with several numbered exit holes and the winner is determined by which hole the hamster or other animal exits, or slot machines or other devices that operate by insertion of a coin or other object that may entitle the person operating the machine to receive a prize by strict dependence on the element of chance;

(34) “operator” means a natural person who, or a municipality or qualified organization that, has obtained a license to conduct an activity subject to this chapter on behalf of a permittee;

(35) “permittee” means a municipality or a qualified organization that holds a valid permit under AS 05.15.100 ;

(36) “police or fire department and company” means a civic, service, or charitable organization in the state, not for pecuniary profit, consisting of members of a police department or fire company established by the state or a political subdivision of the state;

(37) “political organization” means an organization or club organized under or formally affiliated with a political party as defined in AS 15.60.010;

(38) “pull-tab game” means a game of chance where a card, the face of which is covered to conceal a number, symbol, or set of symbols, is purchased by the participant and where a prize is awarded for a card containing certain numbers or symbols designated in advance and at random;

(39) “qualified organization” means a bona fide civic or service organization or a bona fide religious, charitable, fraternal, veterans, labor, political, or educational organization, police or fire department and company, dog mushers’ association, outboard motor association, or fishing derby or nonprofit trade association in the state, that operates without profits to its members and that has been in existence continually for a period of three years immediately before applying for the license or permit; the organization may be a firm, corporation, company, association, or partnership;

(40) “race classic” means a game of chance where prizes are awarded for the closest guess or guesses of the official winning times of a human race or races, and is limited to the Mt. Marathon Race Classic operated and administered by the Seward Chamber of Commerce Convention and Visitors’ Bureau;

(41) “raffle and lottery” means the selling of rights to participate and the awarding of prizes in a game of chance conducted by the drawing for prizes by lot;

(42) “rain classic” means a game of chance in that a prize is awarded for the closest guess of the amount of precipitation that is recorded at a certain location during a certain length of time;

(43) “religious organization” means an organization, church, body of communicants, or group, not for pecuniary profit, gathered in common membership for mutual support and edification in piety, worship, and religious observances, or a society, not for pecuniary profit, of individuals united for religious purposes at a definite place and that is recognized as a religious organization under the federal income tax laws and the selective service law;

(44) “salmon classic” means a game of chance, to be operated and administered by the (A) United Fishermen of Alaska, in which a prize of money is awarded for the closest guess of the total number of salmon harvested commercially statewide, as determined by the Department of Fish and Game, during a certain period of time; (B) Seward Chamber of Commerce Convention and Visitors’ Bureau, in which prizes are awarded for the closest guess or guesses of the weight of the fish officially designated winner of the Seward Silver Salmon Derby Classic; (C) Sterling Area Senior Citizens, Inc., in which a prize of money is awarded for the closest guess of the total number of sockeye salmon crossing the counter operated by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game on the Kenai River as of a certain day and time; or (D) Bristol Bay Native Corporation Education Foundation, in which a prize of money is awarded for the closest guess of the total number of salmon harvested commercially in the five Bristol Bay commercial fishing districts between June 1 and September 30, as determined by the Department of Fish and Game;

(45) “series” means a unit of pull-tabs with the same serial number;

(46) “snow machine classic” means a (A) contest in which prizes are awarded for the correct guess of the racing time of a snow machine or of the snow machine’s position in the race, including prizes to the race contestants; or (B) game of chance where a prize of money is awarded for the closest guess or guesses of at least three elements of uncertainty about a snow machine race that cannot be determined before the commencement of the race; in this paragraph, “race” includes a race solely among snow machines or a race among teams consisting of a combination of a person involved in a contest of skill and a snow machine;

(47) “vendor” means a business whose primary activity is not regulated by this chapter but that (A) is engaged in the sale of pull-tabs on behalf of a permittee; (B) holds a business license under AS 43.70; and (C) is an establishment holding a (i) beverage dispensary license under AS 04.11.090 that has not been designated by the Alcoholic Beverage Control Board under AS 04.16.049(a)(2) – (3), has not been exempted by the Department of Labor and Workforce Development under AS 04.16.049 (c) and AS 23.10.355 , and if the establishment is a hotel, motel, resort, or similar business that caters to the traveling public as a substantial part of its business, does not allow the sale of pull-tabs in a dining room, banquet room, guest room, or other public areas other than a room in which there is regularly maintained a fixed counter or service bar at which alcoholic beverages are sold or served to members of the public for consumption; (ii) package store license under AS 04.11.150 ;

(48) “veterans organization” means a civic, service, or charitable organization in the state, or a branch or lodge or chapter of a national or state organization in the state, not for pecuniary profit, the membership of which consists of individuals who were members of the armed services or forces of the United States or persons who served in the Alaska Territorial Guard.

Sec. 05.15.060 Regulations.

(a) The department shall adopt regulations under AS 44.62 (Administrative Procedure Act) necessary to carry out this chapter covering, but not limited to,

(1) the issuance, renewal, and revocation of permits, licenses, and vendor registrations;

(2) a method of ascertaining net proceeds, the determination of items of expense that may be incurred or paid, and the limitation of the amount of the items of expense to prevent the proceeds from the activity permitted from being diverted to noncharitable, noneducational, nonreligious, or profit-making organizations, individuals, or groups;

(3) the immediate revocation of permits, licenses, and vendor registrations authorized under this chapter if this chapter or regulations adopted under it are violated;

(4) the requiring of detailed, sworn, financial reports of operations from permittees and licensees including detailed statements of receipts and payments;

(5) the investigation of permittees, licensees, registered vendors, and their employees, including the fingerprinting of those permittees, licensees, registered vendors, and employees whom the department considers it advisable to fingerprint;

(6) the method and manner of conducting authorized activities and awarding of prizes or awards, and the equipment that may be used;

(7) the number of activities that may be held, operated, or conducted under a permit during a specified period; however, the department may not allow more than 14 bingo sessions a month and 35 bingo games a session to be conducted under a permit; the holders of a multiple-beneficiary permit under AS 05.15.100(d) may hold, operate, or conduct the number of sessions and games a month equal to the number allowed an individual permittee per month multiplied by the number of holders of the multiple-beneficiary permit;

(8) a method of accounting for receipts and disbursements by operators, including the keeping of records and requirements for the deposit of all receipts in a bank;

(9) the disposition of funds in possession of a permittee, a person, municipality, or qualified organization that possesses an operator’s license, or a registered vendor at the time a permit, a license, or a vendor registration is surrendered, revoked, or invalidated;

(10) restrictions on the participation by employees of the Department of Fish and Game in salmon classics and in king salmon classics, and by employees of Douglas Island Pink and Chum in king salmon classics;

(11) other matters the department considers necessary to carry out this chapter or protect the best interest of the public.

(b) Regulations adopted by the department under this section relating to charitable gaming activity involving pull-tabs shall, to the extent permitted by this chapter, be consistent with the standards on pull-tabs of the North American Gaming Regulators Association, as amended from time to time.

Sec. 05.15.180 Limitations on authorized activity.

(a) This chapter does not authorize the use of playing cards, dice, roulette wheels, coin-operated instruments or machines, or other objects or instruments used, designed, or intended primarily for gaming or gambling or any other method or implement not expressly authorized by the department.

(b) With the exception of raffles, lotteries, bingo games, pull-tab games, race classics, rain classics, goose classics, mercury classics, deep freeze classics, dog mushers’ contests, snow machine classics, canned salmon classics, salmon classics, animal classics, crane classics, Calcutta pools, and king salmon classics, an activity may not be licensed under this chapter unless it existed in the state in substantially the same form and was conducted in substantially the same manner before January 1, 1959. A snow machine classic may not be licensed under this chapter unless it has been in existence for at least five years before the licensing. An animal classic may not be licensed under this chapter unless it was in existence before November 1, 2002.

(c) [Repealed, § 5 ch 105 SLA 1995.]

(d) The total value of door prizes offered or awarded under authority of a permit issued to a municipality or qualified organization under this chapter or under authority of a multiple-beneficiary permit may not exceed $20,000 a month or $240,000 a year.

(e) The total value of all door prizes offered or awarded at a single facility or bingo hall or parlor by an operator on behalf of authorizing permittees may not exceed $20,000 a month or $240,000 a year.

(f) A person under the age of 19 years may not play a bingo game.

(g) A municipality or a qualified organization may award a maximum of $2,000,000 in prizes each year in activities authorized under this chapter; however, if a municipality or a qualified organization contracts with an operator to conduct on its behalf activities authorized under this chapter, the municipality or qualified organization may award a maximum of $500,000 in prizes each year. A municipality or a qualified organization that conducts a contest of skill and awards more than $1,000,000 in prizes to the participants in that contest of skill may exclude $1,000,000 in prizes awarded to those participants from the $2,000,000 maximum allowed in this subsection. The holders of a multiple-beneficiary permit under AS 05.15.100 (d) may award a maximum in prizes each year of $2,000,000 times the number of holders of the permit for activities authorized under this chapter. In this subsection, “activities authorized under this chapter” means all activities subject to this chapter other than bingo.

(h) Only one Calcutta pool permit may be issued for each event and is limited to the permittee conducting the event or a permittee authorized by the person conducting the event if the person is not eligible to be a permittee. A Calcutta pool may not be conducted for elementary, secondary, or post-secondary school sporting events or for youth organization events. A person may not wager on a Calcutta pool unless the person is at least 18 years of age. A permittee may not accept a wager on a contestant or entrant in a Calcutta pool unless the contestant or entrant is or are 18 years of age or older. A person may not place a wager on a contestant or entrant in a Calcutta pool unless the contestant or entrant is or are 18 years of age or older. A Calcutta pool may not be conducted unless the rules for the pool are publicly posted and available to all participants in the pool.

Sec. 05.15.130 Department may impose additional requirements.

The department may supplement the definitions of qualified organizations and activities by regulations adopted under this chapter adding to the definitions additional requirements that the department considers necessary for the best interests of the public or for the proper administration of this chapter.

Sec. 05.15.150 Limitation on use of proceeds.

(a) The authority to conduct the activity authorized by this chapter is contingent upon the dedication of the net proceeds of the charitable gaming activity to the awarding of prizes to contestants or participants and to political, educational, civic, public, charitable, patriotic, or religious uses in the state. “Political, educational, civic, public, charitable, patriotic, or religious uses” means uses benefiting persons either by bringing them under the influence of education or religion or relieving them from disease, suffering, or constraint, or by assisting them in establishing themselves in life, or by providing for the promotion of the welfare and well-being of the membership of the organization within their own community, or through aiding candidates for public office or groups that support candidates for public office, or by erecting or maintaining public buildings or works, or lessening the burden on government, but does not include

(1) the direct or indirect payment of any portion of the net proceeds of a bingo or pull-tab game to a lobbyist registered under AS 24.45;

(2) the erection, acquisition, improvement, maintenance, or repair of real, personal, or mixed property unless it is used exclusively for one or more of the permitted uses; or

(3) the direct or indirect payment of any portion of the net proceeds of a charitable gaming activity, except the proceeds of a raffle and lottery,

(A) to aid candidates for public office or groups that support or oppose candidates for public office;

(B) to a political party or to an organization affiliated with a political party; or

(C) to a group, as that term is defined in AS 15.13.400, or a political group, as that term is defined in AS 15.60, that seeks to influence the outcome of an election.

(b) The net proceeds derived from the activity must be devoted within one year to one or more of the uses stated in (a) of this section. A municipality or qualified organization desiring to hold the net proceeds for a period longer than one year must apply to the department for special permission and upon good cause shown the department may grant the request.

Sec. 05.15.620 Local prohibition of charitable gaming.

(a) The following question, appearing alone, may be placed before the voters of a municipality or an established village in accordance with AS 05.15.625: “Shall charitable gaming in …..7 (name of municipality or village) be prohibited? (yes or no)”.

(b) The following question, appearing alone, may be placed before the voters of a municipality or an established village in accordance with AS 05.15.625: “Shall pull-tab sales in …..7 (name of municipality or village) be prohibited? (yes or no).”

(c) If a majority of the voters vote “yes” on the question set out in (a) or (b) of this section, the department shall be notified immediately after certification of the results of the election and thereafter the department may not issue a license, permit, or vendor registration authorizing charitable gaming or pull-tab sales, as appropriate, within the boundaries of a municipality and in unincorporated areas within five miles of the boundaries of the municipality or within the perimeter of an established village. As necessary to implement the results of an election under (a) or (b) of this section, existing licenses, permits, and vendor registrations for charitable gaming or pull-tab sales within the boundaries of a municipality and in unincorporated areas within five miles of the boundaries of the municipality or within the perimeter of an established village are void 90 days after the results of the election are certified. A license or vendor registration that will expire during the 90 days after the results of a local option election under this section are certified is void as of the expiration date.

Sec. 05.15.625 Procedure for local option elections

(c) Notwithstanding any other provisions of law, an election under (a) or (b) of this section to remove a restriction on charitable gaming imposed under AS 05.15.620 may not be conducted more than once every 12 months.

Sec. 05.15.640 Restrictions on use of broadcasting.

(a) A person may not use broadcasting to promote or conduct a charitable gaming activity under this chapter except that a person may use (1) broadcasting to promote a fish derby, a dog mushers’ contest, or a type of classic defined in AS 05.15.690 , or (2) radio or television broadcasting to promote a charitable raffle and lottery. In this subsection, “broadcasting” includes television and radio transmission by 2,500 megahertz, microwave video and audio programming, slow-scan television programming, and programming by way of satellite, cable, teletype, or facsimile transmission and distribution methods; “raffle and lottery” has the meaning given in AS 05.15.690 .

(b) Notwithstanding (a) of this section, the department may authorize a noncommercial broadcasting station or network of stations to broadcast the conducting of an activity under this chapter on the station or network under a permit held by the station or network. The department may not authorize a station to broadcast the conducting of an activity for more than 12 hours in a calendar year. In this subsection, “noncommercial broadcasting station” means a radio or television station that is licensed by the Federal Communications Commission to a governmental entity or to an entity that is exempt from federal taxation under 26 U.S.C. 501(c)(3) (Internal Revenue Code).

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