N.Y.
General Municipal Law Section 186
Definitions
1.
“Municipality” shall mean any city, town or village within this state.2.
“Board” shall mean New York state gaming commission created pursuant to section one hundred two of the racing, pari-mutuel wagering and breeding law.3.
“Games of chance” shall mean and include only the games known as “merchandise wheels”, “coin boards”, “merchandise boards”, “seal cards”, “event games”, “raffles”, and “bell jars” and such other specific games as may be authorized by the board, in which prizes are awarded on the basis of a designated winning number or numbers, color or colors, symbol or symbols determined by chance, but not including games commonly known as “bingo or lotto” which are controlled under article 14-H (Local Option For Conduct of Bingo By Certain Organizations)article fourteen-H of this chapter and also not including “bookmaking”, “policy or numbers games” and “lottery” as defined in section 225.00 of the penal law. No game of chance shall involve wagering of money by one player against another player. 3-a. “Bell jars” shall mean and include those games in which a participant shall draw a card from a jar, vending machine, or other suitable device or container which contains numbers, colors or symbols that are covered and which, when uncovered, may reveal that a prize shall be awarded on the basis of a designated winning number, color or symbol or combination of numbers, colors or symbols. Bell jars shall also include seal cards, coin boards, event games, and merchandise boards. 3-b. “Raffle” shall mean and include those games of chance in which a participant pays money in return for a ticket or other receipt and in which a prize is awarded on the basis of a winning number or numbers, color or colors, or symbol or symbols designated on the ticket or receipt, determined by chance as a result of:(a)
a drawing from among those tickets or receipts previously sold; or(b)
a random event, the results of which correspond with tickets or receipts previously sold. 3-c. “Coin board” and “merchandise board” shall mean a board used in conjunction with bell jar tickets which contains and displays various coins and/or merchandise as prizes. A player having a bell jar ticket with a number matching a pre-designated number reflected on the board for a prize wins that prize. 3-d. “Seal cards” shall mean a board or placard used in conjunction with a deal of the same serial number which contains one or more concealed areas that, when removed or opened, reveal a predesignated winning number, letter, or symbol located on the board or placard. A seal card used in conjunction with an event game shall not be required to contain lines for prospective seal winners to sign their name. 3-e. “Event game” shall mean a bell jar game in which certain winners are determined by the random selection of one or more bingo numbers, the use of a seal card or by another method approved by the board.4.
“Authorized organization” shall mean and include any bona fide religious or charitable organization or bona fide educational, fraternal or service organization or bona fide organization of veterans or volunteer firefighters, which by its charter, certificate of incorporation, constitution, or act of the legislature, shall have among its dominant purposes one or more of the lawful purposes as defined in this article, provided that each shall operate without profit to its members, and provided that each such organization has engaged in serving one or more of the lawful purposes as defined in this article for a period of three years immediately prior to applying for a license under this article. No organization shall be deemed an authorized organization which is formed primarily for the purpose of conducting games of chance and which does not devote at least seventy-five percent of its activities to other than conducting games of chance. No political party shall be deemed an authorized organization.5.
“Lawful purposes” shall mean one or more of the following causes, deeds or activities:(a)
Those which shall benefit needy or deserving persons indefinite in number by enhancing their opportunity for religious or educational advancement, by relieving them from disease, suffering or distress, or by contributing to their physical wellbeing, by assisting them in establishing themselves in life as worthy and useful citizens, or by increasing their comprehension of and devotion to the principles upon which this nation was founded and enhancing their loyalty to their governments.(b)
Those which shall initiate, perform or foster worthy public works or shall enable or further the erection or maintenance of public structures.(c)
Those that otherwise lessen the burdens borne by government or that are voluntarily undertaken by an authorized organization to augment or supplement services which government would normally render to the people, including, in the case of volunteer firefighters or voluntary emergency medical service activities, the purchase, erection or maintenance of a building for a firehouse or a volunteer ambulance corps building, activities open to the public for the enhancement of membership and the purchase of equipment that can reasonably be expected to increase the efficiency of response to fires, accidents, medical emergencies, public calamities and other emergencies.d.
Those which shall initiate, perform or foster the provisions of services to veterans by encouraging the gathering of such veterans and shall enable or further the erection or maintenance of facilities for use by such veterans which shall be used primarily for charitable or patriotic purposes, or those purposes which shall be authorized by a bona fide organization of veterans, provided however that such proceeds are disbursed pursuant to § 189 (Restrictions upon conduct of games of chance)section one hundred eighty-nine of this article.6.
“Net proceeds” shall mean (a) in relation to the gross receipts from one or more license periods of games of chance, the amount that shall remain after deducting the reasonable sums necessarily and actually expended for supplies and equipment, prizes, security-personnel, stated rental if any, bookkeeping or accounting services according to a schedule of compensation prescribed by the board, janitorial services and utility supplies if any, license fees, and the cost of bus transportation, if authorized by the clerk or department and (b) in relation to the gross rent received by an authorized games of chance lessor for the use of its premises by a game of chance licensee, the amount that shall remain after deducting the reasonable sums necessarily and actually expended for janitorial services and utility supplies directly attributable thereto if any.7.
“Net lease” shall mean a written agreement between a lessor and lessee under the terms of which the lessee is entitled to the possession, use or occupancy of the whole or part of any premises from any non-commercial or non-profit authorized games of chance lessor for which the lessee pays rent to the lessor and likewise undertakes to pay substantially all of the regularly recurring expenses incident to the operation and maintenance of such leased premises.8.
“Authorized games of chance lessor” shall mean an authorized organization which has been granted a lessor’s license pursuant to the provisions of this article or a municipality.9.
“Single type of game” shall mean the games of chance known as merchandise wheels, coin boards, merchandise boards, event games, raffles, and bell jars and each other specific game of chance authorized by the board.10.
“Operation” shall mean the play of a single type of game of chance necessary to determine the outcome or winners each time wagers are made. A single drawing of a winning ticket or other receipt in a raffle shall be deemed one operation.11.
“Single prize” shall mean the sum of money or fair market value of merchandise or coins awarded to a participant by a games of chance licensee in any one operation of a single type of game of chance in excess of his wager.12.
“Series of prizes” shall mean the total amount of single prizes minus the total amount of wagers lost during the successive operations of a single type of game of chance, except that for merchandise wheels and raffles, “series of prizes” shall mean the sum of cash and the fair market value of merchandise awarded as single prizes during the successive operations of any single merchandise wheel or raffle. In the game of raffle, a series of prizes may include a percentage of the sum of cash received from the sale of raffle tickets.13.
“Authorized supplier of games of chance equipment” shall mean any person, firm, partnership, corporation or organization licensed by the board to sell or lease games of chance equipment or paraphernalia which meets the specifications and regulations established by the board. Nothing herein shall prevent an authorized organization from purchasing common articles, such as cards and dice, from normal sources of supply of such articles or from constructing equipment and paraphernalia for games of chance for its own use. However, no such equipment or paraphernalia, constructed or owned by an authorized organization shall be sold or leased to any other authorized organization, without written permission from the board.14.
“One occasion” shall mean the successive operations of any one single type of game of chance which results in the awarding of a series of prizes amounting to five hundred dollars or four hundred dollars during any one license period, in accordance with the provisions of subdivision eight of § 189 (Restrictions upon conduct of games of chance)section one hundred eighty-nine of this article, as the case may be. For purposes of the game of chance known as a merchandise wheel or a raffle, “one occasion” shall mean the successive operations of any one such merchandise wheel or raffle for which the limit on a series of prizes provided by subdivision six of § 189 (Restrictions upon conduct of games of chance)section one hundred eighty-nine of this article shall apply. For purposes of the game of chance known as a bell jar, “one occasion” shall mean the successive operation of any one such bell jar, seal card, event game, coin board, or merchandise board which results in the awarding of a series of prizes amounting to three thousand dollars. For the purposes of the game of chance known as raffle “one occasion” shall mean a calendar year during which successive operations of such game are conducted.15.
“License period” shall mean a period of time not to exceed fourteen consecutive hours and, for purposes of the game of chance known as a bell jar and a raffle, “license period” shall mean a period of time running from January first to December thirty-first of each year.16.
“Clerk” shall mean the clerk of a municipality outside the city of New York.17.
“Officer” shall mean the chief law enforcement officer of a municipality outside the city of New York, or if such municipality exercises the option set forth in subdivision two of § 194 (Control and supervision)section one hundred ninety-four of this article, the chief law enforcement officer of the county.18.
“Department” shall mean the New York City Department of Consumer Affairs.19.
“Premises” shall mean a designated area within a building, hall, tent, or grounds reasonably identified for the conduct of games of chance. Nothing herein shall require such area to be enclosed.20.
“Games of chance currency” shall mean legal tender or a form of scrip or chip authorized by the board, except for games known as “raffles” whereby payment shall mean legal tender, credit or debit card or personal check, any of which may be used at the discretion of the games of chance licensee.21.
“Flare” shall mean a poster description of the bell jar game, which shall include a declaration of the number of winners and amount of prizes in each deal, the number of prizes available in the deal, the number of tickets in each deal which contain the stated prize; the manufacturer’s game form number, and the serial number of the deal which shall be identical to the serial number imprinted on each ticket contained in the deal.
Source:
Section 186 — Definitions, https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/GMU/186 (updated Jan. 11, 2019; accessed Oct. 26, 2024).
