HB3141 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB097 05415 ASK 45473 b

97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2011 and 2012
HB3141

Introduced 2/23/2011, by Rep. Roger L. Eddy

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

New Act
720 ILCS 5/28-1	from Ch. 38, par. 28-1
720 ILCS 5/28-3	from Ch. 38, par. 28-3

Creates the Social Club Poker Act. Provides that the Illinois Gaming Board shall issue social club poker licenses to qualified applicants. Provides that a social club poker licensee may contract with a place of public accommodation to co-host social club poker events if (1) the parties to the contract are at an arm's length relationship and (2) the place of public accommodation is also a licensee in good standing under the Video Gaming Act. Sets forth provisions concerning prizes, fees, and the Board's powers and duties. Defines "arm's length relationship", "Board", "social club poker", and "social club poker licensee". Amends the Criminal Code of 1961 to make corresponding changes.

FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning gaming.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Social Club Poker Act.

Section 5. Purpose. It is the intent of this Act to create jobs in Illinois by creating independent, arms-length business ties between: (a) social club poker licensees, and (b) places of public accommodation that hire and employ Illinois residents.

Section 10. Definitions. In this Act:

"Board" means the Illinois Gaming Board.

"Social club poker" means any table game played with a deck or decks of playing cards in which (1) the performance of any player, or team of players, depends upon a combination of luck and skill and (2) all of the games are played at the place of public accommodation under the supervision of the place of public accommodation's staff and the staff of the social club poker licensee.

"Social club poker licensee" means a private, for-profit person or legal person who is licensed by the Illinois Gaming Board to host games of social poker at places of public accommodation that operate under a liquor license and are not owned by, or otherwise affiliated with, the social club poker licensee.

Section 15. Social club poker license; application; restrictions.

(a) The Board shall issue social club poker licenses to qualified applicants.

(b) No person shall be issued a social club poker license without a background check performed by the Board. The Board shall determine, by administrative rule, the criteria to be met by a social club poker license applicant.

(c) A social club poker license shall be good for 12 months. Each license application shall contain an enumerated list of all of the social club poker games that the social club poker licensee will co-host during the duration of the license.

(d) No place of public accommodation shall be approved to co-host a social club poker event unless that place of public accommodation is also a licensee in good standing under the Video Gaming Act. Licensure of a place of public accommodation under the Video Gaming Act shall be deemed sufficient to establish the place's suitability under the Social Club Poker Act and the Board shall not be required to examine the place of public accommodation.

If the license of a place of public accommodation under the Video Gaming Act expires or is revoked or suspended, then no social club poker may be conducted at that place of public accommodation until the license is re-issued, renewed, or no longer suspended.

(f) A contractual relationship between a social club poker licensee and a place of public accommodation, to be legal, must be an arm's length relationship. For purposes of this subsection (f), "an arm's length relationship" means that neither the place of public accommodation nor the social club poker licensee has, either directly or indirectly, any financial interest in, or exercises control over the other. Nothing in this Act forbids a chain of places of public accommodation from entering into a contract with a social club poker licensee to offer social club poker at 2 or more places of public accommodation.

(g) The social club poker licensee may require that all or part of the prizes paid out are predicated upon the winner having purchased goods or services from the place of public accommodation. Prizes offered by the social club poker licensee may include goods or services provided by the place of public accommodation.

(h) Co-hosts of social club poker events may charge fees to players to enable them to cover the fees charged by the Board under this Act. Nothing in this Act authorizes any fee expenses being passed through to any customers of a place of public accommodation who are not participants in a social club poker event under this Act.

Section 20. Powers and duties of the Illinois Gaming Board.

(a) The Board may examine the books of the social club poker licensee, and enter the place of public accommodation, to enforce this Act.

(b) The Board may establish and charge, by administrative rule, sufficient licensing fees upon both the social club poker licensee and the place of public accommodation to enable it to carry out its supervisory and regulatory requirements under this Act.

(c) The Board shall adopt administrative rules, subject to the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act, to implement and enforce this Act.

Section 50. The Criminal Code of 1961 is amended by changing Sections 28-1 and 28-3 as follows:

(720 ILCS 5/28-1) (from Ch. 38, par. 28-1)

Sec. 28-1. Gambling.

(a) A person commits gambling when he:

(1) Plays a game of chance or skill for money or other thing of value, unless excepted in subsection (b) of this Section; or

(2) Makes a wager upon the result of any game, contest, or any political nomination, appointment or election; or

(3) Operates, keeps, owns, uses, purchases, exhibits, rents, sells, bargains for the sale or lease of, manufactures or distributes any gambling device; or

(4) Contracts to have or give himself or another the option to buy or sell, or contracts to buy or sell, at a future time, any grain or other commodity whatsoever, or any stock or security of any company, where it is at the time of making such contract intended by both parties thereto that the contract to buy or sell, or the option, whenever exercised, or the contract resulting therefrom, shall be settled, not by the receipt or delivery of such property, but by the payment only of differences in prices thereof; however, the issuance, purchase, sale, exercise, endorsement or guarantee, by or through a person registered with the Secretary of State pursuant to Section 8 of the Illinois Securities Law of 1953, or by or through a person exempt from such registration under said Section 8, of a put, call, or other option to buy or sell securities which have been registered with the Secretary of State or which are exempt from such registration under Section 3 of the Illinois Securities Law of 1953 is not gambling within the meaning of this paragraph (4); or

(5) Knowingly owns or possesses any book, instrument or apparatus by means of which bets or wagers have been, or are, recorded or registered, or knowingly possesses any money which he has received in the course of a bet or wager; or

(6) Sells pools upon the result of any game or contest of skill or chance, political nomination, appointment or election; or

(7) Sets up or promotes any lottery or sells, offers to sell or transfers any ticket or share for any lottery; or

(8) Sets up or promotes any policy game or sells, offers to sell or knowingly possesses or transfers any policy ticket, slip, record, document or other similar device; or

(9) Knowingly drafts, prints or publishes any lottery ticket or share, or any policy ticket, slip, record, document or similar device, except for such activity related to lotteries, bingo games and raffles authorized by and conducted in accordance with the laws of Illinois or any other state or foreign government; or

(10) Knowingly advertises any lottery or policy game, except for such activity related to lotteries, bingo games and raffles authorized by and conducted in accordance with the laws of Illinois or any other state; or

(11) Knowingly transmits information as to wagers, betting odds, or changes in betting odds by telephone, telegraph, radio, semaphore or similar means; or knowingly installs or maintains equipment for the transmission or receipt of such information; except that nothing in this subdivision (11) prohibits transmission or receipt of such information for use in news reporting of sporting events or contests; or

(12) Knowingly establishes, maintains, or operates an Internet site that permits a person to play a game of chance or skill for money or other thing of value by means of the Internet or to make a wager upon the result of any game, contest, political nomination, appointment, or election by means of the Internet. This item (12) does not apply to activities referenced in items (6) and (6.1) of subsection (b) of this Section.

(b) Participants in any of the following activities shall not be convicted of gambling therefor:

(1) Agreements to compensate for loss caused by the happening of chance including without limitation contracts of indemnity or guaranty and life or health or accident insurance.

(2) Offers of prizes, award or compensation to the actual contestants in any bona fide contest for the determination of skill, speed, strength or endurance or to the owners of animals or vehicles entered in such contest.

(3) Pari-mutuel betting as authorized by the law of this State.

(4) Manufacture of gambling devices, including the acquisition of essential parts therefor and the assembly thereof, for transportation in interstate or foreign commerce to any place outside this State when such transportation is not prohibited by any applicable Federal law; or the manufacture, distribution, or possession of video gaming terminals, as defined in the Video Gaming Act, by manufacturers, distributors, and terminal operators licensed to do so under the Video Gaming Act.

(5) The game commonly known as "bingo", when conducted in accordance with the Bingo License and Tax Act.

(6) Lotteries when conducted by the State of Illinois in accordance with the Illinois Lottery Law. This exemption includes any activity conducted by the Department of Revenue to sell lottery tickets pursuant to the provisions of the Illinois Lottery Law and its rules.

(6.1) The purchase of lottery tickets through the Internet for a lottery conducted by the State of Illinois under the program established in Section 7.12 of the Illinois Lottery Law.

(7) Possession of an antique slot machine that is neither used nor intended to be used in the operation or promotion of any unlawful gambling activity or enterprise. For the purpose of this subparagraph (b)(7), an antique slot machine is one manufactured 25 years ago or earlier.

(8) Raffles when conducted in accordance with the Raffles Act.

(9) Charitable games when conducted in accordance with the Charitable Games Act.

(10) Pull tabs and jar games when conducted under the Illinois Pull Tabs and Jar Games Act.

(11) Gambling games conducted on riverboats when authorized by the Riverboat Gambling Act.

(12) Video gaming terminal games at a licensed establishment, licensed truck stop establishment, licensed fraternal establishment, or licensed veterans establishment when conducted in accordance with the Video Gaming Act.

(13) Games of skill or chance where money or other things of value can be won but no payment or purchase is required to participate.

(14) Poker games conducted when authorized by the Social Club Poker Act.

(c) Sentence.

Gambling under subsection (a)(1) or (a)(2) of this Section is a Class A misdemeanor. Gambling under any of subsections (a)(3) through (a)(11) of this Section is a Class A misdemeanor. A second or subsequent conviction under any of subsections (a)(3) through (a)(11), is a Class 4 felony. Gambling under subsection (a)(12) of this Section is a Class A misdemeanor. A second or subsequent conviction under subsection (a)(12) is a Class 4 felony.

(d) Circumstantial evidence.

In prosecutions under subsection (a)(1) through (a)(12) of this Section circumstantial evidence shall have the same validity and weight as in any criminal prosecution.

(Source: P.A. 96-34, eff. 7-13-09; 96-37, eff. 7-13-09; 96-1203, eff. 7-22-10.)

(720 ILCS 5/28-3) (from Ch. 38, par. 28-3)

Sec. 28-3. Keeping a Gambling Place. A "gambling place" is any real estate, vehicle, boat or any other property whatsoever used for the purposes of gambling other than gambling conducted in the manner authorized by the Social Club Poker Act, Riverboat Gambling Act, or the Video Gaming Act. Any person who knowingly permits any premises or property owned or occupied by him or under his control to be used as a gambling place commits a Class A misdemeanor. Each subsequent offense is a Class 4 felony. When any premises is determined by the circuit court to be a gambling place:

(a) Such premises is a public nuisance and may be proceeded against as such, and

(b) All licenses, permits or certificates issued by the State of Illinois or any subdivision or public agency thereof authorizing the serving of food or liquor on such premises shall be void; and no license, permit or certificate so cancelled shall be reissued for such premises for a period of 60 days thereafter; nor shall any person convicted of keeping a gambling place be reissued such license for one year from his conviction and, after a second conviction of keeping a gambling place, any such person shall not be reissued such license, and

(c) Such premises of any person who knowingly permits thereon a violation of any Section of this Article shall be held liable for, and may be sold to pay any unsatisfied judgment that may be recovered and any unsatisfied fine that may be levied under any Section of this Article.

(Source: P.A. 96-34, eff. 7-13-09.)