2023 New York Laws › GMU - General Municipal › Article 14-H - Local Option for Conduct of Bingo by Certain Organizations › 476 - Definitions.

§ 476. Definitions. As used in this article, the following terms shall
have the following meanings:
1.  "Municipality"  shall  mean  any city, town or village within this
state.
2. "Control commission" or "commission" shall mean the New York  state
gaming  commission  created  pursuant  to section one hundred two of the
racing, pari-mutuel wagering and breeding law.
3. "Bingo" or "game" shall mean and include a specific game of chance,
commonly known as bingo or lotto, in which prizes  are  awarded  on  the
basis  of  designated numbers or symbols on a card conforming to numbers
or symbols selected at random.
4. "Authorized organization" shall mean  and  include  any  bona  fide
religious   or   charitable   organization  or  bona  fide  educational,
fraternal, civic or service organization or bona  fide  organization  of
veterans,  volunteer firefighters, or volunteer ambulance workers, 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 one year immediately prior to
applying for a license under this article.
5. "Bingo control law" shall mean article nineteen-B of the  executive
law.
6.  "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  well-being,  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 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 in accordance with the rules and regulations of the  state
gaming commission.
(d) Those which shall otherwise lessen the burdens borne by government
or  which  are  voluntarily  undertaken by an authorized organization to
augment or supplement services which government would normally render to
the people.
7. "Net proceeds" shall mean (a) in relation  to  the  gross  receipts
from  one or more occasions of bingo, the amount that shall remain after
deducting the reasonable sums  necessarily  and  actually  expended  for
bingo  supplies and equipment, prizes, stated rental if any, bookkeeping
or  accounting  services  according  to  a  schedule   of   compensation
prescribed  by  the commission, janitorial services and utility supplies
if any, license fees, and the cost of bus transportation, if  authorized
by  the  control  commission,  and  (b)  in  relation  to the gross rent
received by an organization licensed to conduct bingo for the use of its

premises by  another  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.
8.  "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 commercial
premises 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.
9. "Authorized  commercial  lessor"  shall  mean  a  person,  firm  or
corporation  other than a licensee to conduct bingo under the provisions
of this article, who or which owns or is a net lessee  of  premises  and
offer  the  same  for  leasing  by  him,  her  or  it  to  an authorized
organization for any consideration whatsoever, direct or  indirect,  for
the purpose of conducting bingo therein, provided that he, she or it, as
the case may be, shall not be
(a)  a  person  convicted of a crime if there is a direct relationship
between one or more of the previous criminal offenses and the  integrity
or  safety  of  bingo,  considering  the  factors  set  forth in article
twenty-three-A of the correction law;
(b) a person who is or has been a  professional  gambler  or  gambling
promoter or who for other reasons is not of good moral character;
(c)  a  public  officer  who  receives  any  consideration,  direct or
indirect, as owner or lessor of premises  offered  for  the  purpose  of
conducting bingo therein;
(d)  a firm or corporation in which a person defined in paragraph (a),
(b) or (c) of this subdivision or a person married  or  related  in  the
first   degree  to  such  a  person  has  greater  than  a  ten  percent
proprietary, equitable or credit interest or in which such a  person  is
active or employed.
Nothing  contained  in  this subdivision shall be construed to bar any
firm or corporation that is not organized for pecuniary  profit  and  no
part  of  the  net  earnings  of  which  inure  to  the  benefit  of any
individual, member, or shareholder, from being an authorized  commercial
lessor  solely  because a public officer, or a person married or related
in the first degree to a public officer, is a member of,  active  in  or
employed by such firm or corporation.
10.  "Limited  period  bingo"  shall  mean  the  conduct of bingo by a
licensed authorized organization, for a period of not more than seven of
twelve consecutive days in any one year, at a festival, bazaar, carnival
or similar function conducted by such licensed authorized  organization.
No  authorized  organization  licensed  to  conduct limited period bingo
shall be otherwise eligible to conduct bingo pursuant to this article in
the same year.
11. "Supercard" shall mean a bingo card on which prizes  are  awarded,
which  card  is  selected  by  the  player,  containing  five designated
numbers, colors or symbols, corresponding to the letters B, I, N, G,  O,
displayed  on  the bingo board of the bingo premises operator, which can
be played concurrently with the other bingo cards played during the game
of bingo.
11-a. "Early bird" shall mean a  bingo  game  which  is  played  as  a
special  game, conducted not more than twice during a bingo occasion, in
which  prizes  are  awarded  based  upon  a  percentage  not  to  exceed
seventy-five  percent  of the sum of money received from the sale of the
early bird cards and which  is  neither  subject  to  the  prize  limits
imposed   by   subdivisions   five  and  six  of  section  four  hundred
seventy-nine and paragraph  (a)  of  subdivision  one  of  section  four

hundred  eighty-one,  nor  the  special  game  opportunity  charge limit
imposed by  section  four  hundred  eighty-nine  of  this  article.  The
percentage  shall be specified both in the application for bingo license
and the license. Not more than one dollar shall be charged per card with
the total amount collected from the sale of the early bird cards and the
prize  for  each  game  to  be announced before the commencement of each
game.
11-b. "Bonus  ball"  shall  mean  a  bingo  game  that  is  played  in
conjunction  with  one or more regular or special bingo games designated
as bonus ball games by the licensed authorized organization  during  one
or  more  consecutive bingo occasions in which a prize is awarded to the
player obtaining a specified winning bingo pattern when the last  number
called  by  the licensed authorized organization is the designated bonus
ball number. The bonus ball prize shall be based upon  a  percentage  of
the  sales  from opportunities to participate in bonus ball games not to
exceed seventy-five percent of the sum of money received from  the  sale
of  bonus ball opportunities or six thousand dollars, whichever shall be
less,  and  which  is  not  subject  to  the  prize  limits  imposed  by
subdivisions  five  and  six  of  section  four hundred seventy-nine and
paragraph (a) of subdivision one of section four hundred  eighty-one  of
this  article. The percentage shall be specified both in the application
for the bingo license and  the  license.  Notwithstanding  section  four
hundred  eighty-nine  of this article, not more than one dollar shall be
charged per player for an opportunity to participate in all  bonus  ball
games  conducted  during  a  single bingo occasion, and the total amount
collected from the sale of bonus ball opportunities and  the  amount  of
the  prize  to  be awarded shall be announced prior to the start of each
bingo occasion.
12. "Prize", where supercard is played as  set  forth  in  subdivision
eleven  of  this section, shall mean the sum of money or actual value of
merchandise awarded to the winner or winners on a  game  card  during  a
game  of  bingo  and  the  sum  of  money or actual value of merchandise
awarded to the winner or winners on a supercard in excess of  the  total
receipts derived from the sale of supercards for that specific game.
13.  "Ancillary  non-gaming  activity"  shall  mean  any  activity not
directly related to the conduct or outcome of any  game  of  bingo,  and
shall  include  assisting  at any food concession, cleaning, maintenance
and site preparation at the location where games of bingo are conducted.