2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE FIFTEEN - Sports and Parks (§§ 1 — 2020) › Subtitle 1 - Generally (§§ 1 — 915) › Chapter 5 - Games of Chance (§§ 71 — 91) › § 78 - Supervision of gambling rooms—Personnel licensing, penalties, franchise and/or license cancellation

(a) The Commissioner of Financial Institutions may revoke or suspend any franchise or license granted under §§ 71—79 and 85—89 of this title to any person who:
(1) Has obtained the franchise through fraud or deceit;
(2) fails to meet the requirements of § 72 of this title;
(3) fails to meet the requirements of the Puerto Rico Tourism Company pursuant to its powers under §§ 71—79 and 85—89 of this title; or due to a change of circumstances in accordance with the requirements established in § 73 of this title for the granting of franchises, except when previous authorization from the Commissioner is obtained;
(4) fails to pay or evades payment of the license fee when due;
(5) has tax debts on any account already assessed and to be collected by the internal revenue offices or violates any payment plan agreed upon with and by the Secretary of the Treasury while operating the hotel or establishment where the gambling room is located and while holding a license to operate said gambling room;
(6) promotes the use of slot machines by allowing free gambling in said machines;
(7) violates any of the provisions of §§ 71—79 and 85—89 of this title or the regulations prescribed to complement them, and
(8) restricts, hides, denies or submits fraudulent or deceiving information to the Department of Games of Chance and/or the Office of the Commissioner of Financial Institutions, or both.
The Office of the Commissioner of Financial Institutions may impose administrative fines on the concessionaire, and/or any of its employees in any of the cases previously referred to or in a sum of not less than two thousand dollars ($2,000) and not more than twenty thousand dollars ($20,000) for each violation. The amount of the fine shall be covered into the General Fund of the Commonwealth Treasury and if payment is not made within thirty (30) days as of the notice of the fine to the concessionaire, the Commissioner of Financial Institutions may revoke or suspend any franchise, license or proceed with the collection of the fine, for which he/she may use the same procedures used for the collection of franchise fees.
(b) No gambling device, including slot machines, shall be possessed, maintained or exhibited by any person on the premises of a hotel and casino complex, except in the casino itself and in secured areas used to inspect, repair or store such devices, and specifically designated by the licensee for that purpose with the approval of the Tourism Company. No gambling device, including slot machines, shall be possessed, maintained, exhibited, brought into or removed from an authorized gambling room by any person unless said device is necessary for the operation of an authorized gambling room and has an identification number or symbol authorized by the Tourism Company permanently fixed, printed or engraved upon it and is under the exclusive control of the licensee or his/her authorized employees. The removal of any gambling device, including slot machines, must be previously approved by the Tourism Company.
(c) Any person, licensee or patron of a gambling room, who introduces or uses or attempts to use in a casino, any gambling device which is different in nature or with specifications other than those prescribed by law or by the regulations approved under the laws authorizing and regulating games of chance, or who, with the criminal intent of stealing money in cash or its equivalent, in any way alters the odds or the operation of the slot machines, or in any way interferes with the acquisition of, transportation to, introduction, possession, use and/or operation of slot machines in Puerto Rico, in violation of the law or the regulations adopted by the authorization of said machines in Puerto Rico, shall be guilty of a felony and upon conviction thereof shall be punished with imprisonment for a minimum term of five (5) years and a maximum term often (10) years.
(d) The regulations drafted by the Tourism Company to regulate all matters concerning the games of chance shall be approved pursuant to the procedure established in § 88 of this title. Any person violating any of the provisions of § 71 of this title or the regulations of the Tourism Company, except as otherwise provided therein, shall be sentenced upon conviction thereof, with a fine of not less than one hundred dollars ($100) nor more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000), or of imprisonment for a term of not less than one (1) month nor more than six (6) months, or both penalties, at the discretion of the court.
(e) Regardless of the penalties prescribed in §§ 71—79 and 85—89 of this title, the Tourism Company and the Commissioner of Financial Institutions are hereby empowered to administratively punish all violations of their orders and regulations with the temporary suspension or revocation of the rights and privileges enjoyed by the natural or juridical person guilty of the violation in the operation of the games of chance; Provided, That the Tourism Company may also administratively punish the violations of their orders and regulations with a fine that shall not exceed ten thousand dollars ($10,000).
(f) The Commissioner of Financial Institutions or the Tourism Company may temporarily suspend or permanently cancel the franchises, licenses, rights and privileges enjoyed by any natural or juridical person under §§ 71—79 and 85—89 of this title, also known as the “Games of Chance Act”.
History —May 15, 1948, No. 221, p. 750, § 9; June 23, 1956, No. 90, p. 582, § 8; July 30, 1974, No. 2, Part 2, p. 587, § 7; June 16, 1976, No. 5, p. 656, § 2; June 12, 1980, No. 115, p. 392, §§ 1, 2; June 26, 1997, No. 24, § 11; Jan. 8, 2004, No. 11, § 2.