An Act To License Betting on Football Score Pools
Maine Legislature, Session 126, LD 0428
Committee: Veterans and Legal Affairs
Sponsors: MacDONALD, CHENETTE, JACKSON, JOHNSON, WEAVER
Amends: 17 MRSA §1847

Legislative Document 
No. 428 
H.P. 300 
House of Representatives, February 14, 2013 
An Act To License Betting on Football Score Pools 
Reference to the Committee on Veterans and Legal Affairs suggested and ordered printed. 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Presented by Representative MacDONALD of Old Orchard Beach. 
Cosponsored by Representatives: CHENETTE of Saco, JACKSON of Oxford, JOHNSON of 
Greenville, WEAVER of York. 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1.  17 MRSA §1847 is enacted to read: 
§1847.  Pools for football score wagers 
1.  Definitions.  For the purposes of this section, "football score pool" means a 
contest where a person pays a fixed entry price as a wager on the score of a professional 
football game.  A person wins by coming the closest to or matching the score submitted 
with the entry fee to the actual score of the football game for which the person submitted 
the wager.  The entry fees received as wagers for a football score pool, less any operator 
fee under subsection 3, are awarded as a prize to the winner or divided equally among 
multiple winners. 
2.  Football score pools authorized.  Notwithstanding any provision of this Title or 
Title 17-A to the contrary, the Chief of the State Police may issue a license to operate a 
football score pool to a person licensed to serve alcoholic beverages for on-premises 
consumption under Title 28-A in accordance with this section.  A person who wishes to 
conduct a football score pool must submit an application for licensure under this section 
to the Chief of the State Police in a manner prescribed by the Chief of the State Police. 
3.  Operator fee.  A person licensed to conduct a football score pool may retain an 
operator fee in an amount up to 20% of the total entry fees received for that football score 
pool. 
4.  License fee; records and materials.  The fee for a license to operate a football 
score pool in accordance with this section is $50 per calendar year.  A license permits an 
operator to conduct up to 100 football score pools during a calendar year.  Materials used 
to conduct a football score pool must be provided by a licensed printer or distributor as 
described by section 1840.  A person licensed to conduct a football score pool shall 
maintain records detailing the entry fees, prizes and operator fees for each football score 
pool conducted for a period of 3 years from the date of the football score pool and shall 
make those records available for inspection by the Chief of the State Police. 
SUMMARY 
This bill authorizes the Chief of the State Police to issue a license to operate football 
score pools.  A person licensed to sell alcoholic beverages for on-premises consumption 
is eligible for a football score pool license.  The fee for a football score pool license is 
$50 per calendar year.  A football score pool operator may retain an operator fee in an 
amount up to 20% of the total entry fees received for that football score pool.