78R11500 E
By: Flores H.B. No. 2443
Substitute the following for H.B. No. 2443:
By: Jones of Lubbock C.S.H.B. No. 2443
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the authorization of satellite bingo games.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 2001.002, Occupations Code, is amended
by adding Subdivision (29) to read as follows:
(29) "Satellite bingo game" means a single bingo game
in which players participate simultaneously at two or more
locations and for which there is a common prize pool and a common
selection of numbers or symbols conducted at a single location,
with the results of the selection transmitted electronically to
each participating location by satellite, telephone, or other
means.
SECTION 2. Subchapter I, Chapter 2001, Occupations Code, is
amended by adding Section 2001.421 to read as follows:
Sec. 2001.421. REGULATION OF SATELLITE BINGO. (a)
Sections 2001.402 and 2001.420 do not apply to a satellite bingo
game.
(b) The commission by rule may exempt a satellite bingo game
or a person who conducts or participates in a satellite bingo game
or who holds a license under this chapter from any other provision
of this chapter if the commission determines the exemption is
necessary to facilitate the operation and administration of
satellite bingo games.
SECTION 3. Subchapter C, Chapter 2001, Occupations Code, is
amended by adding Section 2001.108 to read as follows:
Sec. 2001.108. SATELLITE BINGO SERVICE PROVIDER'S LICENSE.
(a) To provide satellite bingo services, in any manner, for the use
of licensed authorized organizations, a person must obtain a
satellite bingo service provider's license from the commission.
(b) An applicant for a license under this section must file
with the commission a written application that includes:
(1) the name and address of the applicant;
(2) if a noncorporate entity, the name and address of
each owner;
(3) if a corporation, the name and address of each
officer and director and each person owning 10 percent or more of
any class of stock in the corporation;
(4) information regarding whether the applicant or any
person who is required to be named in the application has been
convicted of a felony, criminal fraud, a gambling or
gambling-related offense, or a crime of moral turpitude; and
(5) information regarding whether the applicant or any
person required to be named in the application is an owner, officer,
director, shareholder, agent, or employee of a commercial lessor
licensed under this chapter.
(c) A person is not eligible for a license under this
section if:
(1) the person has been convicted of a felony,
criminal fraud, a gambling or gambling-related offense, or a crime
of moral turpitude and it has been less than 10 years since the
termination of the sentence, parole, or probation related to the
offense; or
(2) the person is an owner, officer, or director of a
holder of a commercial lessor, manufacturer, or distributor
licensed under this chapter.
(d) The fee for a satellite bingo service provider's license
is $5,000 plus an amount to cover any cost incurred to conduct
criminal background checks in connection with the application for
the license or license renewal.
(e) The commission shall revoke the license of a satellite
bingo service provider if any disqualification under this section
occurs within the license period.
(f) A satellite bingo service provider may purchase goods or
services from a licensed manufacturer.
(g) The commission may inspect the satellite bingo service
provider's services. The satellite bingo service provider shall
provide to the commission any information requested that relates to
the complaint. The commission shall prescribe procedures for
investigating and resolving complaints against a satellite bingo
service provider.
(h) A satellite bingo service provider shall be bonded in an
amount established by rule of the commission. The amount of the
bond may not be less than $50,000 or more than $250,000.
(i) A satellite bingo service provider shall establish a
bank account into which all proceeds from each satellite bingo game
for which the provider provides services shall be deposited, less
any prizes paid. Only the following disbursements may be made from
the satellite bingo bank account:
(1) payment of prizes;
(2) payment of taxes and fees on prizes;
(3) allocation payments to participating licensed
authorized organizations;
(4) payments for facility access fees; and
(5) payments to a satellite bingo service provider for
operating costs.
(j) Allocation payments to a licensed authorized
organization participating in satellite bingo shall be made
monthly. An organization is entitled to receive a portion of the
satellite bingo proceeds from each month that is based on the number
of satellite bingo sessions the organization conducted at a
particular facility that month, divided by the total number of
satellite bingo sessions conducted in the facility that month. The
total amount of allocation payments made to all participating
licensed authorized organizations for a month may not be less than
25 percent of the gross receipts derived from satellite bingo games
conducted at the facility in that month.
(k) The satellite bingo service provider shall pay a
facility access fee to a lessor or licensed authorized entity for
the purpose of installing satellite equipment. The fee may not be
less than five percent of the gross receipts derived from satellite
bingo games conducted at a facility.
SECTION 4. Subchapter K, Chapter 2001, Occupations Code, is
amended by adding Section 2001.516 to read as follows:
Sec. 2001.516. FEES ON SATELLITE BINGO GAME. (a) Sections
2001.502, 2001.503, and 2001.504 do not apply to a satellite bingo
game.
(b) A satellite bingo service provider shall collect a fee
from each person who wins a prize in a satellite bingo game for
which that provider provides services.
(c) The fee imposed by this section is 10 percent of the
amount or value of the prize.
(d) The commission shall prescribe procedures for delivery
to the commission of fees imposed under this section. Revenue
collected by the commission under this section shall first be used
by the commission to offset the cost of administering the
provisions of this chapter regulating satellite bingo and satellite
bingo games. The commission shall transfer any revenue remaining
after those administrative costs have been recovered by the
commission to the comptroller.
SECTION 5. This Act takes effect October 1, 2003.