Chapter 252
2010 -- S 2960 AS AMENDED
Enacted 07/01/10
A N A C T
RELATING TO LOTTERY
Introduced By: Senator Maryellen Goodwin
Date Introduced: June 02, 2010
It is enacted by the
General Assembly as follows:
SECTION 1. Section 11-19-35 of the General Laws in Chapter
11-19 entitled "Gambling
and Lotteries" is hereby amended to read as follows:
11-19-35. Pull-tab lottery tickets. --
(a) The Rhode Island lottery commission is
empowered to sell and regulate the sale of pull-tab lottery
tickets to religious, fraternal, civic,
educational, veterans', or charitable organizations. The commission
lottery shall determine,
consistent with this section, those organizations that are
authorized to sell pull-tab lottery tickets.
As part of such
determination, the
of the applicant and any individual the lottery deems
appropriate and said individuals shall
apply to the bureau of criminal investigation of the
department of the attorney general for a national criminal
records check with fingerprinting. The
individual whose criminal records check is being conducted shall
be responsible for the payment
of the costs of said criminal records check. The
department of attorney general, as applicable, shall send the
results of such criminal check to the
destroy said fingerprint record(s). On or before February 1,
2011, the agency shall adopt rules and
regulations establishing criteria to be used in determining
whether based upon a criminal records
check an application will be approved.
(b) The lottery
shall insure that the pull tab lottery tickets to be distributed are secured
for the purposes under which they are to be sold in terms
of concealing the result of the tickets
until the time that they are sold to the general public.
Consistent with this section, those
organizations authorized to sell the tickets are authorized to
retain net profits as shall have been
provided for by the commission.
(b)(c)
Notwithstanding any other section of the general laws to the contrary, pull-tab
lottery tickets authorized by this section are declared to be
legal.
SECTION 2. Section 41-1-1 of the General Laws in Chapter
41-1 entitled "Division of
Racing and Athletics"
is hereby amended to read as follows:
41-1-1. Division of racing and athletics -- Duties.
-- Within the department of business
regulation there shall be a division of racing and athletics.
The division shall supervise the
enforcement of all laws relating to the regulation and control of
racing and athletics, and may in
the first instance make decisions and issue orders,
subject to appeal to the racing and athletics
hearing board. The division shall exercise all powers and
duties prescribed by chapters 3, 3.1, 4,
5, 7, and 11 and 7
of this title, and all other acts relative to the regulation and supervision of
horse
racing, dog racing, and athletics, heretofore performed by
the commission on horse racing and
athletics. The division shall comply with RI general laws
section 42-14-14 in the conduct of any
investigation related to any license application, permit and/or
registration related to Chapters 3,
3.1, 4,
7 and 11 of this title. The
division may comply with RI general laws section 42-14-14 in
the conduct of any investigation related to any license
application, permit and/or registration
related to chapters 5 and 5.2 of this title. Such
investigation shall require the applicant to apply to
the bureau of criminal identification of the
department of the attorney general for a nationwide criminal
records check with fingerprinting.
The applicant shall be responsible
for payment of the costs of said criminal records check. The
Rhode Island state police
or the Rhode Island department of the attorney general, as applicable,
shall send the results of such criminal records check to
the division. Once said results are sent to
and received by the
department of attorney general shall promptly destroy said
fingerprint record(s). On or before
February 1, 2011, the
agency shall adopt rules and regulations establishing criteria to be used in
determining whether based upon a criminal records check an
application will be approved.
SECTION 3. Section 42-61-5 of the General Laws in Chapter
42-61 entitled "State
Lottery" is hereby amended
to read as follows:
42-61-5.
Sales agents. -- (a) For the purpose of this
chapter, the term "person" shall be
construed to mean and include an individual, association,
partnership, corporation, trust, estate,
company, receiver, trustee, referee, or other person acting
in a fiduciary or representative
capacity, whether appointed by a court or otherwise, and any
combination of individuals.
"Person" shall be construed to mean all
departments, committees, commissions, agencies, and
instrumentalities of the state, including counties and municipalities
and agencies and
instrumentalities of the state.
(b) (1) The director of lotteries may license any person as a
lottery sales agent as
provided in this chapter. No license shall be issued to any
person to engage in the sale of lottery
tickets as his or her sole occupation or business.
(2)
As part of its investigation as to whether to issue a lottery sales agent
license, the
agent license as it deems appropriate and said individuals
shall apply to the bureau of criminal
investigation of the
general for a national criminal records check with
fingerprinting. The applicant whose criminal
records check is being conducted shall be responsible for the
payment of the costs of said
criminal records check. The
general, as applicable, shall send the results of such
criminal records check to the
lottery. Once said results are sent to and received by the
state police and the
fingerprint record(s). On or before February 1, 2011, the agency
shall adopt rules and regulations
establishing criteria to be used in determining whether based upon
a criminal records check an
application will be approved.
(c) Before issuing any
license to a lottery sales agent the director shall consider:
(1) The financial
responsibility and security of the person and his or her business or
activity;
(2) The accessibility
of his or her 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.
(d) The director shall
refuse to grant or shall suspend, pending a hearing before the
division, or recommend a revocation of a license if the
applicant or licensee:
(1) Has been convicted
of a felony, or any crime involving moral turpitude;
(2) Has been engaging
in gambling as a significant source of income;
(3) Has been convicted
of violating any gambling statutes;
(4) Has been convicted
of fraud or misrepresentation in any connection;
(5) Has been found to
have violated any rule, regulation, or order of the state lottery
division.
The license of an agent
shall be suspended by the director for any charge which may
result in a conviction for conduct prescribed in
subdivisions (d)(1) -- (d)(5); which suspension
shall be effective until a final judicial determination.
(e) The director shall
refuse to grant, or shall suspend, pending a hearing before the
division, or recommend revocation of a license if the applicant
or licensee is a corporation:
(1) Any of whose
directors, officers, or controlling shareholders have
been found guilty
of any of the activities specified in subsection (d);
(2) In which it appears
to the director of lotteries that due to the experience, character, or
general fitness of any director, officer, or controlling
shareholder, the granting of a license as a
lottery sales agent would be inconsistent with the public
interest, convenience, or trust;
(3) Not the owner or lessee
of the business at which it will conduct a lottery sales agency
pursuant to the license applied for, or that any person, firm,
association, or corporation other than
the applicant shares or will share in the profits of the
applicant, other than receiving dividends as
a shareholder, or will participate in the management of
the affairs of the applicant.
(f) Every holder of a
license as a lottery sales agent shall renew the license annually
pursuant to the rules and regulations of the division.
Licensees shall pay to the division a fee to be
determined by the director upon receipt or renewal of a license.
(g) Whenever requested
by the director, the division of criminal identification of the
department of the attorney general, the superintendent of state
police, any superintendent or chief
of police or sergeant of any city or town, shall furnish
all information on convictions, arrests and
present investigations concerning any person who is an
applicant for a license or who is a licensee
of the state lottery.
(h) Notwithstanding any
other provision of law, any person licensed as provided in this
chapter is authorized and empowered to act as a lottery sales
agent.
(i)
Every licensed sales agent authorized pursuant to this section and every
licensed
video lottery retailer authorized by chapter 61.2 of this
title shall keep conspicuously posted on
his or her premises the name and telephone number of a
council on problem gambling recognized
by an appropriate authority within state government or
within the professional field of addiction
disorders and a statement of its availability to offer
assistance. The lottery division shall supply
each licensee with the required notice.
SECTION 4. Section 42-61.2-3 of the General Laws in Chapter
42-61.2 entitled "Video
Lottery Terminal" is
hereby amended to read as follows:
42-61.2-3.
Additional powers and duties of the director. --
In addition to the powers
and duties of the state lottery director under section 42-61-4,
the director shall promulgate
reasonable rules and regulations relating to video lottery games
and to make recommendations
and set policy for these games. These rules and
regulations and shall include, but not be limited
to:
(1) The division shall license technology providers capable of interfacing with
a central
communications system controlled by the division. In making its
licensing decision, the division
shall select providers based on the following factors:
providers experienced in performing
comparable projects, financial stability, technical and
management abilities, the quality of the
product and service capabilities, likelihood of timely
performance, maximum revenue generation,
its ability to pass a law enforcement background investigation,
and any other factors found to be
relevant to performance. As part of its investigation as to
whether to issue a license hereunder, the
appropriate and said individuals shall apply to the bureau of
criminal investigation of the Rhode
Island state police or the
records check with fingerprinting. The applicant whose
criminal records check is being conducted
shall be responsible for the payment of the costs of said
criminal records check. The
state police or the
results of such criminal records check to the
and received by the
department of attorney general shall promptly destroy said
fingerprint record(s). On or before
February 1, 2011, the
agency shall adopt rules and regulations establishing criteria to be used in
determining whether based upon a criminal records check an
application will be approved.
The award of a license
to technology providers under this section shall satisfy the
requirements of chapter 2 of title 37. An outside independent
testing laboratory may be utilized
by the division at the expense of the individual
provider;
(2) Accounting procedures
for determining the net terminal income from lottery video
terminals, and unclaimed prizes and credits;
(3) The type of video
lottery games to be conducted;
(4) The price to play
each game and the prizes or credits to be awarded;
(5) Financial reporting
procedures for licensed video lottery retailers and control
procedures in the event that any of these retailers should
become insolvent;
(6) Insurance and
bonding by:
(i)
Licensed video lottery retailers; and
(ii) Technology
provider;
(7) The licensing of
licensed video lottery retailers;
(8) The contracting
with technology providers;
(9) All video lottery
machines shall be linked under a central communications system to
provide auditing program information as approved by the
division. The communications system
approved by the division may not limit participation to only
one manufacturer of video lottery
machines by either cost of implementing the necessary program
modifications to communicate or
the inability to communicate with the central
communication system;
(10) Establishment of
information system, operating procedures, reporting and
accounting criteria in order to comply with the provisions of
section 42-61.2-12; and
(11) Any other matters
necessary for video lottery terminals or for the convenience of
the public.
SECTION 5. This act shall take effect upon passage.
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LC02838
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