Ohio Gambling Laws

Ohio Revised Code

Chapter XXI

§ 3763.01. Gaming contracts void.

(A) All promises, agreements, notes, bills, bonds, or other contracts, mortgages, or other securities, when the whole or part of the consideration thereof is for money or other valuable thing won or lost, laid, staked, or betted at or upon a game of any kind, or upon a horse race or cockfights, sport or pastime, or on a wager, or for the repayment of money lent or advanced at the time of a game, play, or wager, for the purpose of being laid, betted, staked, or wagered, are void.

(B) Sections 3763.01 to 3763.08 of the Revised Code do not apply to bingo as defined in section 2915.01 of the Revised Code or to any game of chance that is not subject to criminal penalties under section 2915.02 of the Revised Code.

§ 3763.02. Money lost at games may be recovered; exceptions.

If a person, by playing a game, or by a wager, loses to another, money or other thing of value, and pays or delivers it or a part thereof, to the winner thereof, such person losing and paying or delivering, within six months after such loss and payment or delivery, may sue for and recover such money or thing of value or part thereof, from the winner thereof, with costs of suit.

Neither this section nor section 3763.04 of the Revised Code shall apply to any business transacted upon a regularly established stock exchange or board of trade through a member thereof whose relation to the transaction is that of broker only, and who actually delivers or receives the securities or other commodity bought or sold in accordance with the rules and regulations of said stock exchange or board of trade.

§ 3763.04. Suit by third party.

If a person losing money or thing of value, as provided in section 3763.02 of the Revised Code, within the time therein specified, and without collusion or deceit, does not sue, and effectively prosecute, for such money or thing of value, any person may sue for and recover it, with costs of suit, against such winner, for the use of such person prosecuting such suit.

§ 3763.05. Action for discovery.

A person, liable under sections 3763.01 to 3763.08, inclusive, of the Revised Code, may be compelled to answer, upon oath, interrogatories annexed to the petition for the purpose of discovery of his liability. Upon discovery and repayment of the money or other thing, the person discovering and repaying it, with costs, shall be acquitted and discharged from further punishment, penalty, or forfeiture, for winning such money or thing discovered and repaid.

§ 3763.08. Recovery of losses in lotteries.

A person who expends money or thing of value or incurs an obligation for the purchase of or to procure a lottery or policy ticket, hazard, or chance, or an interest therein, in or on account of lottery, policy, scheme of chance, game of faro, pool or combination, keno, or scheme of gambling, or a person dependent for support upon or entitled to the earnings of such person, or a citizen for the use of the person so interested, may sue for and recover from the person receiving such money, thing of value, or obligation, the amount thereof, with exemplary damages, which shall not be less than fifty nor more than five hundred dollars, and may join as defendants in such suit all persons having an interest in such lottery, policy, or scheme of chance, or the possible profits thereof, as backers, vendors, owners, or otherwise.

The Ohio House voted overwhelmingly on Oct. 10, 2007, to put an immediate end to the proliferation of slot machine-like games in the state. The bill would ban cash payouts from the games, or ban any tournament, including those for Golden Tee machines, darts or pool, where the house takes a cut of the proceeds. Banning tournament play, Speaker Jon Husted said, was necessary to avoid the next generation of games, where machine manufacturers get around the law by calling the games tournaments.  Senate approval is said to be likely, and the bill has an emergency provision that would bring it into effect immediately on signing by teh governor.  See the full story in The Columbus Dispatch.  The text of the bill is here (scroll down to paragraph (aaa).)  This bill was signed into law on Oct. 25, 2007 by the governor of Ohio.

Chapter 2915 contains the Penal Code provisions on Gambling.  1974 Committee Comment to H 511

The fundamental thrust of new Chapter 2915. is to prohibit the business of gambling without forbidding gambling carried on for pleasure rather than profit.

Under the chapter, all forms of gambling and activities in aid of it are illegal if carried on as a business, or for personal profit, or as a significant source of income or livelihood. Otherwise, no form of gambling is illegal. Gambling in public is prohibited to avoid enforcement problems, and this represents a partial exception to the general rule in the chapter.

Cheating as such was not an offense under former law, but is an offense under Chapter 2915. regardless of whether the gambling activity in which it occurs is legal or illegal. For penalty purposes, cheaters are treated much the same as thieves under new section 2913.02 of the Revised Code. A simplified version of a former prohibition against "fixing" sporting events is also included in the chapter.

  § 2915.01 Definitions.

  As used in this chapter:

 (A)"Bookmaking" means the business of receiving or paying off bets.

(B)"Bet" means the hazarding of anything of value upon the result of an event, undertaking, or contingency, but does not include a bona fide business risk.

(C)"Scheme of chance" means a slot machine, lottery, numbers game, pool conducted for profit, or other scheme in which a participant gives a valuable consideration for a chance to win a prize, but does not include bingo, a skill-based amusement machine, or a pool not conducted for profit.

(D) "Game of chance" means poker, craps, roulette, or other game in which a player gives anything of value in the hope of gain, the outcome of which is determined largely by chance, but does not include bingo.
(E)"Game of chance conducted for profit" means any game of chance designed to produce income for the person who

conducts or operates the game of chance, but does not include bingo.

(F)"Gambling device" means any of the following:
(1) A book, totalizer, or other equipment for recording bets; (2) A ticket, token, or other device representing a chance, share, or interest in a scheme of chance or evidencing a bet; (3) A deck of cards, dice, gaming table, roulette wheel, slot machine, or other apparatus designed for use in connection with a game of chance; (4) Any equipment, device, apparatus, or paraphernalia specially designed for gambling purposes; (5) Bingo supplies sold or otherwise provided, or used, in violation of this chapter.

(G)"Gambling offense" means any of the following:
(1) A violation of section 2915.02, 2915.03, 2915.04, 2915.05, 2915.06, 2915.07, 2915.08, 2915.081, 2915.082, 2915.09, 2915.091, 2915.092, 2915.10, or 2915.11 of the Revised Code; (2) A violation of an existing or former municipal ordinance or law of this or any other state or the United States substantially equivalent to any section listed in division (G)(1) of this section or a violation of section 2915.06 of the Revised Code as it existed prior to July 1, 1996; (3) An offense under an existing or former municipal ordinance or law of this or any other state or the United States, of which gambling is an element; (4) A conspiracy or attempt to commit, or complicity in committing, any offense under division (G)(1), (2), or (3) of this section.

(H) Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, "charitable organization" means any tax exempt religious, educational, veteran's, fraternal, sporting, service, nonprofit medical, volunteer rescue service, volunteer firefighter's, senior citizen's, historic railroad educational, youth athletic, amateur athletic, or youth athletic park organization. An organization is tax exempt if the organization is, and has received from the internal revenue service a determination letter that currently is in effect stating that the organization is, exempt from federal income taxation under subsection 501(a) and described in subsection 501(c)(3), 501(c)(4), 501(c)(8), 501(c)(10), or 501(c)(19) of the Internal Revenue Code, or if the organization is a sporting organization that is exempt from federal income taxation under subsection 501(a) and is described in subsection 501(c)(7) of the Internal Revenue Code. To qualify as a charitable organization, an organization, except a volunteer rescue service or volunteer firefighter's organization, shall have been in continuous existence as such in this state for a period of two years immediately preceding either the making of an application for a bingo license under section 2915.08 of the Revised Code or the conducting of any game of chance as provided in division (D) of section 2915.02 of the Revised Code. A charitable organization that is exempt from federal income taxation under subsection 501(a) and described in subsection 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and that is created by a veteran's organization, a fraternal organization, or a sporting organization does not have to have been in continuous existence as such in this state for a period of two years immediately preceding either the making of an application for a bingo license under section 2915.08 of the Revised Code or the conducting of any game of chance as provided in division (D) of section 2915.02 of the Revised Code.

(I) "Religious organization" means any church, body of communicants, or group that is not organized or operated for profit and that gathers in common membership for regular worship and religious observances.

(J) "Educational organization" means any organization within this state that is not organized for profit, the primary purpose of which is to educate and develop the capabilities of individuals through instruction by means of operating or contributing to the support of a school, academy, college, or university.

(K) "Veteran's organization" means any individual post or state headquarters of a national veteran's association or an auxiliary unit of any individual post of a national veteran's association, which post, state headquarters, or auxiliary unit has been in continuous existence in this state for at least two years and incorporated as a nonprofit corporation and either has received a letter from the state headquarters of the national veteran's association indicating that the individual post or auxiliary unit is in good standing with the national veteran's association or has received a letter from the national veteran's association indicating that the state headquarters is in good standing with the national veteran's association. As used in this division, "national veteran's association" means any veteran's association that has been in continuous existence as such for a period of at least five years and either is incorporated by an act of the United States congress or has a national dues-paying membership of at least five thousand persons.

(L) "Volunteer firefighter's organization" means any organization of volunteer firefighters, as defined in section 146.01 of the Revised Code, that is organized and operated exclusively to provide financial support for a volunteer fire department or a volunteer fire company and that is recognized or ratified by a county, municipal corporation, or township.

(M) "Fraternal organization" means any society, order, state headquarters, or association within this state, except a college or high school fraternity, that is not organized for profit, that is a branch, lodge, or chapter of a national or state organization, that exists exclusively for the common business or sodality of its members, and that has been in continuous existence in this state for a period of five years.

(N) "Volunteer rescue service organization" means any organization of volunteers organized to function as an emergency medical service organization, as defined in section 4765.01 of the Revised Code.

(0)"Service organization" means either of the following:
(1) Any organization, not organized for profit, that is organized and operated exclusively to provide, or to contribute to the support of organizations or institutions organized and operated exclusively to provide, medical and therapeutic services for persons who are crippled, born with birth defects, or have any other mental or physical defect or those organized and operated exclusively to protect, or to contribute to the support of organizations or institutions organized and operated exclusively to protect, animals from inhumane treatment or provide immediate shelter to victims of domestic violence; (2) Any organization that is described in subsection 509(a)(1), 509(a)(2), or 509(a)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and is either a governmental unit or an organization that is tax exempt under subsection 501(a) and described in subsection 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and that is an organization, not organized for profit, that is organized and operated primarily to provide, or to contribute to the support of organizations or institutions organized and operated primarily to provide, medical and therapeutic services for persons who are crippled, born with birth defects, or have any other mental or physical defect.

(P) "Nonprofit medical organization" means either of the following:
(1) Any organization that has been incorporated as a nonprofit corporation for at least five years and that has continuously operated and will be operated exclusively to provide, or to contribute to the support of organizations or institutions organized and operated exclusively to provide, hospital, medical, research, or therapeutic services for the public; (2) Any organization that is described and qualified under subsection 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, that has been incorporated as a nonprofit corporation for at least five years, and that has continuously operated and will be operated primarily to provide, or to contribute to the support of organizations or institutions organized and operated primarily to provide, hospital, medical, research, or therapeutic services for the public.

(Q) "Senior citizen's organization" means any private organization, not organized for profit, that is organized and operated exclusively to provide recreational or social services for persons who are fifty-five years of age or older and that is described and qualified under subsection 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.

(R) "Charitable bingo game" means any bingo game described in division (S)(1) or (2) of this section that is conducted by a charitable organization that has obtained a license pursuant to section 2915.08 of the Revised Code and the proceeds of which are used for a charitable purpose.

(S) "Bingo" means either of the following:
(1) A game with all of the following characteristics:
(a) The participants use bingo cards or sheets, including paper formats and electronic representation or image formats, that are divided into twenty-five spaces arranged in five horizontal and five vertical rows of spaces, with each space, except the central space, being designated by a combination of a letter and a number and with the central space being designated as a free space.
(b) The participants cover the spaces on the bingo cards or sheets that correspond to combinations of letters and numbers that are announced by a bingo game operator.
(c) A bingo game operator announces combinations of letters and numbers that appear on objects that a bingo game operator selects by chance, either manually or mechanically, from a receptacle that contains seventy-five objects at the beginning of each game, each object marked by a different combination of a letter and a number that corresponds to one of the seventy-five possible combinations of a letter and a number that can appear on the bingo cards or sheets.
(d) The winner of the bingo game includes any participant who properly announces during the interval between the announcements of letters and numbers as described in division (S)(1)(c) of this section, that a predetermined and preannounced pattern of spaces has been covered on a bingo card or sheet being used by the participant.
(2) Instant bingo, punch boards, and raffles.

(T) "Conduct" means to back, promote, organize, manage, carry on, sponsor, or prepare for the operation of bingo or a game of chance.

(U) "Bingo game operator" means any person, except security personnel, who performs work or labor at the site of bingo, including, but not limited to, collecting money from participants, handing out bingo cards or sheets or objects to cover spaces on bingo cards or sheets, selecting from a receptacle the objects that contain the combination of letters and numbers that appear on bingo cards or sheets, calling out the combinations of letters and numbers, distributing prizes, selling or redeeming instant bingo tickets or cards, supervising the operation of a punch board, selling raffle tickets, selecting raffle tickets from a receptacle and announcing the winning numbers in a raffle, and preparing, selling, and serving food or beverages.

(V) "Participant" means any person who plays bingo.

(W) "Bingo session" means a period that includes both of the following:
(1) Not to exceed five continuous hours for the conduct of one or more games described in division (S)(1) of this section, instant bingo, and seal cards; (2) A period for the conduct of instant bingo and seal cards for not more than two hours before and not more than two hours after the period described in division (W)(1) of this section.

(X) "Gross receipts" means all money or assets, including admission fees, that a person receives from bingo without the deduction of any amounts for prizes paid out or for the expenses of conducting bingo. "Gross receipts" does not include any money directly taken in from the sale of food or beverages by a charitable organization conducting bingo, or by a bona fide auxiliary unit or society of a charitable organization conducting bingo, provided all of the following apply:
(1) The auxiliary unit or society has been in existence as a bona fide auxiliary unit or society of the charitable organization for at least two years prior to conducting bingo.
(2) The person who purchases the food or beverage receives nothing of value except the food or beverage and items customarily received with the purchase of that food or beverage.
(3) The food and beverages are sold at customary and reasonable prices. (Y) "Security personnel" includes any person who either is a sheriff,deputy sheriff, marshal, deputy marshal, township constable, or member of an organized police department of a municipal corporation or has successfully completed a peace officer's training course pursuant to sections 109.71 to 109.79 of the Revised Code and who is hired to provide security for the premises on which bingo is conducted.

(Z) "Charitable purpose" means that the net profit of bingo, other than instant bingo, is used by, or is given, donated, or otherwise transferred to, any of the following:
(1) Any organization that is described in subsection 509(a)(1), 509(a)(2), or 509(a)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and is either a governmental unit or an organization that is tax exempt under subsection 501(a) and described in subsection 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code; (2) A veteran's organization that is a post, chapter, or organization of veterans, or an auxiliary unit or society of, or a trust or foundation for, any such post, chapter, or organization organized in the United States or any of its possessions, at least seventy-five per cent of the members of which are veterans and substantially all of the other members of which are individuals who are spouses, widows, or widowers of veterans, or such individuals, provided that no part of the net earnings of such post, chapter, or organization inures to the benefit of any private shareholder or individual, and further provided that the net profit is used by the post, chapter, or organization for the charitable purposes set forth in division (B)(12) of section 5739.02 of the Revised Code, is used for awarding scholarships to or for attendance at an institution mentioned in division (B)(12) of section 5739.02 of the Revised Code, is donated to a governmental agency, or is used for nonprofit youth activities, the purchase of United States or Ohio flags that are donated to schools, youth groups, or other bona fide nonprofit organizations, promotion of patriotism, or disaster relief; (3) A fraternal organization that has been in continuous existence in this state for fifteen years and that uses the net profit exclusively for religious, charitable, scientific, literary, or educational purposes, or for the prevention of cruelty to children or animals, if contributions for such use would qualify as a deductible charitable contribution under subsection 170 of the Internal Revenue Code; (4) A volunteer firefighter's organization that uses the net profit for the purposes set forth in division (L) of this section.

(AA) "Internal Revenue Code" means the "Internal Revenue Code of 1986," 100 Stat. 2085, 26 U.S.C. 1, as now or

hereafter amended.

(BB) "Youth athletic organization" means any organization, not organized for profit, that is organized and operated exclusively to provide financial support to, or to operate, athletic activities for persons who are twenty-one years of age or younger by means of sponsoring, organizing, operating, or contributing to the support of an athletic team, club, league, or association.

(CC) "Youth athletic park organization" means any organization, not organized for profit, that satisfies both of the following:
(1) It owns, operates, and maintains playing fields that satisfy both of the following:
(a) The playing fields are used at least one hundred days per year for athletic activities by one or more organizations, not organized for profit, each of which is organized and operated exclusively to provide financial support to, or to operate, athletic activities for persons who are eighteen years of age or younger by means of sponsoring, organizing, operating, or contributing to the support of an athletic team, club, league, or association.
(b) The playing fields are not used for any profit-making activity at any time during the year.
(2) It uses the proceeds of bingo it conducts exclusively for the operation, maintenance, and improvement of its playing fields of the type described in division (CC)(1) of this section.

(DD) "Amateur athletic organization" means any organization, not organized for profit, that is organized and operated exclusively to provide financial support to, or to operate, athletic activities for persons who are training for amateur athletic competition that is sanctioned by a national governing body as defined in the "Amateur Sports Act of 1978," 90 Stat. 3045, 36 U.S.C.A. 373.

(EE) "Bingo supplies" means bingo cards or sheets; instant bingo tickets or cards; electronic bingo aids; raffle tickets; punch boards; seal cards; instant bingo ticket dispensers; and devices for selecting or displaying the combination of bingo letters and numbers or raffle tickets. Items that are "bingo supplies" are not gambling devices if sold or otherwise provided, and used, in accordance with this chapter. For purposes of this chapter, "bingo supplies" are not to be considered equipment used to conduct a bingo game.

(FF) "Instant bingo" means a form of bingo that uses folded or banded tickets or paper cards with perforated break-open tabs, a face of which is covered or otherwise hidden from view to conceal a number, letter, or symbol, or set of numbers, letters, or symbols, some of which have been designated in advance as prize winners. "Instant bingo" includes seal cards. "Instant bingo" does not include any device that is activated by the insertion of a coin, currency, token, or an equivalent, and that contains as one of its components a video display monitor that is capable of displaying numbers, letters, symbols, or characters in winning or losing combinations.

(GG) "Seal card" means a form of instant bingo that uses instant bingo tickets in conjunction with a board or placard that contains one or more seals that, when removed or opened, reveal predesignated winning numbers, letters, or symbols.

(HH) "Raffle" means a form of bingo in which the one or more prizes are won by one or more persons who have purchased a raffle ticket. The one or more winners of the raffle are determined by drawing a ticket stub or other detachable section from a receptacle containing ticket stubs or detachable sections corresponding to all tickets sold for the raffle.

(II) "Punch board" means a board containing a number of holes or receptacles of uniform size in which are placed, mechanically and randomly, serially numbered slips of paper that may be punched or drawn from the hole or receptacle when used in conjunction with instant bingo. A player may punch or draw the numbered slips of paper from the holes or receptacles and obtain the prize established for the game if the number drawn corresponds to a winning number or, if the punch board includes the use of a seal card, a potential winning number.

(JJ) "Gross profit" means gross receipts minus the amount actually expended for the payment of prize awards.

(KK) "Net profit" means gross profit minus expenses.

(LL) "Expenses" means the reasonable amount of gross profit actually expended for all of the following:
(1) The purchase or lease of bingo supplies; (2) The annual license fee required under section 2915.08 of the Revised Code; (3) Bank fees and service charges for a bingo session or game account described in section 2915.10 of the Revised Code; (4) Audits and accounting services; (5) Safes; (6) Cash registers; (7) Hiring security personnel; (8) Advertising bingo; (9) Renting premises in which to conduct a bingo session; (10) Tables and chairs; (11) Expenses for maintaining and operating a charitable organization's facilities, including, but not limited to, a post home, club house, lounge, tavern, or canteen and any grounds attached to the post home, club house, lounge, tavern, or canteen; (12) Any other product or service directly related to the conduct of bingo that is authorized in rules adopted by the attorney general under division (B)(1) of section 2915.08 of the Revised Code.

(MM) "Person" has the same meaning as in section 1.59 of the Revised Code and includes any firm or any other legal entity, however organized.

(NN) "Revoke" means to void permanently all rights and privileges of the holder of a license issued under section 2915.08, 2915.081, or 2915.082 of the Revised Code or a charitable gaming license issued by another jurisdiction.

(00)"Suspend" means to interrupt temporarily all rights and privileges of the holder of a license issued under section 2915.08, 2915.081, or 2915.082 of the Revised Code or a charitable gaming license issued by another jurisdiction.

(PP) "Distributor" means any person who purchases or obtains bingo supplies and who does either of the following:
(1) Sells, offers for sale, or otherwise provides or offers to provide the bingo supplies to another person for use in this state; (2) Modifies, converts, adds to, or removes parts from the bingo supplies to further their promotion or sale for use in this state.

(QQ) "Manufacturer" means any person who assembles completed bingo supplies from raw materials, other items, or subparts or who modifies, converts, adds to, or removes parts from bingo supplies to further their promotion or sale.

(RR) "Gross annual revenues" means the annual gross receipts derived from the conduct of bingo described in division (S)(1) of this section plus the annual net profit derived from the conduct of bingo described in division (S)(2) of this section.

(SS) "Instant bingo ticket dispenser" means a mechanical device that dispenses an instant bingo ticket or card as the sole item of value dispensed and that has the following characteristics:
(1) It is activated upon the insertion of United States currency.
(2) It performs no gaming functions.
(3) It does not contain a video display monitor or generate noise.
(4) It is not capable of displaying any numbers, letters, symbols, or characters in winning or losing combinations.
(5) It does not simulate or display rolling or spinning reels.
(6) It is incapable of determining whether a dispensed bingo ticket or card is a winning or nonwinning ticket or card and requires a winning ticket or card to be paid by a bingo game operator.
(7) It may provide accounting and security features to aid in accounting for the instant bingo tickets or cards it dispenses.
(8) It is not part of an electronic network and is not interactive. (TT)(1) "Electronic bingo aid" means an electronic device used by a participant to monitor bingo cards or sheets purchased at the time and place of a bingo session and that does all of the following:
(a) It provides a means for a participant to input numbers and letters announced by a bingo caller.
(b) It compares the numbers and letters entered by the participant to the bingo faces previously stored in the memory of the device.
(c) It identifies a winning bingo pattern.
(2) "Electronic bingo aid" does not include any device into which a coin, currency, token, or an equivalent is inserted to activate play.

(UU) "Deal of instant bingo tickets" means a single game of instant bingo tickets all with the same serial number.

(VV)(1) "Slot machine" means either of the following:
(a) Any mechanical, electronic, video, or digital device that is capable of accepting anything of value, directly or indirectly, from or on behalf of a player who gives the thing of value in the hope of gain; (b) Any mechanical, electronic, video, or digital device that is capable of accepting anything of value, directly or indirectly, from or on behalf of a player to conduct or dispense bingo or a scheme or game of chance.
(2) "Slot machine" does not include a skill-based amusement machine.
(WW) "Net profit from the proceeds of the sale of instant bingo" means gross profit minus the ordinary, necessary, and reasonable expense expended for the purchase of instant bingo supplies.

(XX) "Charitable instant bingo organization" means an organization that is exempt from federal income taxation under subsection 501(a) and described in subsection 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and is a charitable organization as defined in this section. A "charitable instant bingo organization" does not include a charitable organization that is exempt from federal income taxation under subsection 501(a) and described in subsection 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and that is created by a veteran's organization, a fraternal organization, or a sporting organization in regards to bingo conducted or assisted by a veteran's organization, a fraternal organization, or a sporting organization pursuant to section 2915.13 of the Revised Code.

(YY) "Game flare" means the board or placard that accompanies each deal of instant bingo tickets and that has printed on or affixed to it the following information for the game:
(1) The name of the game; (2) The manufacturer's name or distinctive logo; (3) The form number; (4) The ticket count; (5) The prize structure, including the number of winning instant bingo tickets by denomination and the respective winning symbol or number combinations for the winning instant bingo tickets; (6) The cost per play; (7) The serial number of the game.

(ZZ) "Historic railroad educational organization" means an organization that is exempt from federal income taxation under subsection 501(a) and described in subsection 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, that owns in fee simple the tracks and the right of way of a historic railroad that the organization restores or maintains and on which the organization provides excursions as part of a program to promote tourism and educate visitors regarding the role of railroad transportation in Ohio history, and that received as donations from a charitable organization that holds a license to conduct bingo under this chapter an amount equal to at least fifty per cent of that licensed charitable organization's net proceeds from the conduct of bingo during each of the five years preceding June 30, 2003. "Historic railroad" means all or a portion of the tracks and right-of-way of a railroad that was owned and operated by a for-profit common carrier in this state at any time prior to January 1, 1950.

(AAA)(1) "Skill-based amusement machine" means a mechanical, video, digital, or electronic device that rewards the player or players, if at all, only with merchandise prizes or with redeemable vouchers redeemable only for merchandise prizes, provided that with respect to rewards for playing the game all of the following apply:
(a) The wholesale value of a merchandise prize awarded as a result of the single play of a machine does not exceed ten dollars; (b) Redeemable vouchers awarded for any single play of a machine are not redeemable for a merchandise prize with a wholesale value of more than ten dollars; (c) Redeemable vouchers are not redeemable for a merchandise prize that has a wholesale value of more than ten dollars times the fewest number of single plays necessary to accrue the redeemable vouchers required to obtain that prize; and (d) Any redeemable vouchers or merchandise prizes are distributed at the site of the skill-based amusement machine at the time of play.
(2) A device shall not be considered a skill-based amusement machine and shall be considered a slot machine if it pays cash or one or more of the following apply:
(a) The ability of a player to succeed at the game is impacted by the number or ratio of prior wins to prior losses of players playing the game.
(b) Any reward of redeemable vouchers is not based solely on the player achieving the object of the game or the player's score; (c) The outcome of the game, or the value of the redeemable voucher or merchandise prize awarded for winning the game, can be controlled by a source other than any player playing the game.
(d) The success of any player is or may be determined by a chance event that cannot be altered by player actions.
(e) The ability of any player to succeed at the game is determined by game features not visible or known to the player.
(f) The ability of the player to succeed at the game is impacted by the exercise of a skill that no reasonable player could exercise.
(3) All of the following apply to any machine that is operated as described in division (AAA)(1) of this section:
(a) As used in this section, "game" and "play" mean one event from the initial activation of the machine until the results of play are determined without payment of additional consideration. An individual utilizing a machine that involves a single game, play, contest, competition, or tournament may be awarded redeemable vouchers or merchandise prizes based on the results of play.
(b) Advance play for a single game, play, contest, competition, or tournament participation may be purchased. The cost of the contest, competition, or tournament participation may be greater than a single noncontest, competition, or tournament play.
(c) To the extent that the machine is used in a contest, competition, or tournament, that contest, competition, or tournament has a defined starting and ending date and is open to participants in competition for scoring and ranking results toward the awarding of redeemable vouchers or merchandise prizes that are stated prior to the start of the contest, competition, or tournament.
(4) For purposes of division (AAA)(1) of this section, the mere presence of a device, such as a pin-setting, ball-releasing, or scoring mechanism, that does not contribute to or affect the outcome of the play of the game does not make the device a skill-based amusement machine.

(BBB) "Merchandise prize" means any item of value, but shall not include any of the following:
(1) Cash, gift cards, or any equivalent thereof; (2) Plays on games of chance, state lottery tickets, bingo, or instant bingo; (3) Firearms, tobacco, or alcoholic beverages; or (4) A redeemable voucher that is redeemable for any of the items listed in division (BBB)(1), (2), or (3) of this section.

(CCC) "Redeemable voucher" means any ticket, token, coupon, receipt, or other noncash representation of value.

(DDD) "Pool not conducted for profit" means a scheme in which a participant gives a valuable consideration for a chance to win a prize and the total amount of consideration wagered is distributed to a participant or participants.

(EEE) "Sporting organization" means a hunting, fishing, or trapping organization, other than a college or high school fraternity or sorority, that is not organized for profit, that is affiliated with a state or national sporting organization, including but not limited to, the Ohio league of sportsmen, and that has been in continuous existence in this state for a period of three years.

(FFF) "Community action agency" has the same meaning as in section 122.66 of the Revised Code.

 § 2915.02 Gambling.

(A) No person shall do any of the following:

(1) Engage in bookmaking, or knowingly engage in conduct that facilitates bookmaking;

(2) Establish, promote, or operate or knowingly engage in conduct that facilitates any game of chance conducted for profit or any scheme of chance;

(3) Knowingly procure, transmit, exchange, or engage in conduct that facilitates the procurement, transmission, or exchange of information for use in establishing odds or determining winners in connection with bookmaking or with any game of chance conducted for profit or any scheme of chance;

(4) Engage in betting or in playing any scheme or game of chance as a substantial source of income or livelihood;

(5) With purpose to violate division (A)(1), (2), (3), or (4) of this section, acquire, possess, control, or operate any gambling device.

(B) For purposes of division (A)(1) of this section, a person facilitates bookmaking if the person in any way knowingly aids an illegal bookmaking operation, including, without limitation, placing a bet with a person engaged in or facilitating illegal bookmaking. For purposes of division (A)(2) of this section, a person facilitates a game of chance conducted for profit or a scheme of chance if the person in any way knowingly aids in the conduct or operation of any such game or scheme, including, without limitation, playing any such game or scheme.

(C) This section does not prohibit conduct in connection with gambling expressly permitted by law.

(D) This section does not apply to any of the following:

(1) Games of chance, if all of the following apply:

(a) The games of chance are not craps for money or roulette for money.

(b) The games of chance are conducted by a charitable organization that is, and has received from the internal revenue service a determination letter that is currently in effect, stating that the organization is, exempt from federal income taxation under subsection 501(a) and described in subsection 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.

(c) The games of chance are conducted at festivals of the charitable organization that are conducted either for a period of four consecutive days or less and not more than twice a year or for a period of five consecutive days not more than once a year, and are conducted on premises owned by the charitable organization for a period of no less than one year immediately preceding the conducting of the games of chance, on premises leased from a governmental unit, or on premises that are leased from a veteran's or fraternal organization and that have been owned by the lessor veteran's or fraternal organization for a period of no less than one year immediately preceding the conducting of the games of chance.

A charitable organization shall not lease premises from a veteran's or fraternal organization to conduct a festival described in division (D)(1)(c) of this section if the veteran's or fraternal organization already has leased the premises four times during the preceding year to charitable organizations for that purpose. If a charitable organization leases premises from a veteran's or fraternal organization to conduct a festival described in division (D)(1)(c) of this section, the charitable organization shall not pay a rental rate for the premises per day of the festival that exceeds the rental rate per bingo session that a charitable organization may pay under division (B)(1) of section 2915.09 of the Revised Code when it leases premises from another charitable organization to conduct bingo games.

(d) All of the money or assets received from the games of chance after deduction only of prizes paid out during the conduct of the games of chance are used by, or given, donated, or otherwise transferred to, any organization that is described in subsection 509(a)(1), 509(a)(2), or 509(a)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and is either a governmental unit or an organization that is tax exempt under subsection 501(a) and described in subsection 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code;

(e) The games of chance are not conducted during, or within ten hours of, a bingo game conducted for amusement purposes only pursuant to section 2915.12 of the Revised Code.

No person shall receive any commission, wage, salary, reward, tip, donation, gratuity, or other form of compensation, directly or indirectly, for operating or assisting in the operation of any game of chance.

(2) Any tag fishing tournament operated under a permit issued under section 1533.92 of the Revised Code, as "tag fishing tournament" is defined in section 1531.01 of the Revised Code;

(3) Bingo conducted by a charitable organization that holds a license issued under section 2915.08 of the Revised Code.

(E) Division (D) of this section shall not be construed to authorize the sale, lease, or other temporary or permanent transfer of the right to conduct games of chance, as granted by that division, by any charitable organization that is granted that right.

(F) Whoever violates this section is guilty of gambling, a misdemeanor of the first degree. If the offender previously has been convicted of any gambling offense, gambling is a felony of the fifth degree.

§ 2915.03 Operating a gambling house.

 (A) No person, being the owner or lessee, or having custody, control, or supervision of premises, shall:

 (1) Use or occupy such premises for gambling in violation of section 2915.02 of the Revised Code;

 (2) Recklessly permit such premises to be used or occupied for gambling in violation of section 2915.02 of the Revised Code.

(B) Whoever violates this section is guilty of operating a gambling house, a misdemeanor of the first degree. If the offender previously has been convicted of a gambling offense, operating a gambling house is a felony of the fifth degree.

(C) Premises used or occupied in violation of this section constitute a nuisance subject to abatement pursuant to sections 3767.01 to 3767.99 of the Revised Code.

§ 2915.04 Public gaming.

(A) No person, while at a hotel, restaurant, tavern, store, arena, hall, or other place of public accommodation, business, amusement, or resort shall make a bet or play any game of chance or scheme of chance.

(B) No person, being the owner or lessee, or having custody, control, or supervision, of a hotel, restaurant, tavern, store, arena, hall, or other place of public accommodation, business, amusement, or resort shall recklessly permit those premises to be used or occupied in violation of division (A) of this section.

(C) Divisions (A) and (B) of this section do not prohibit conduct in connection with gambling expressly permitted by law.

(D) Whoever violates this section is guilty of public gaming. Except as otherwise provided in this division, public gaming is a minor misdemeanor. If the offender previously has been convicted of any gambling offense, public gaming is a misdemeanor of the fourth degree.

(E) Premises used or occupied in violation of division (B) of this section constitute a nuisance subject to abatement under Chapter 3767. of the Revised Code.

§ 2915.05 Cheating, corrupting sports.

(A) No person, with purpose to defraud or knowing that the person is facilitating a fraud, shall engage in conduct designed to corrupt the outcome of any of the following:

(1) The subject of a bet;

(2) A contest of knowledge, skill, or endurance that is not an athletic or sporting event;

(3) A scheme or game of chance;

(4) Bingo.

(B) No person shall knowingly do any of the following:

(1) Offer, give, solicit, or accept anything of value to corrupt the outcome of an athletic or sporting event;

(2) Engage in conduct designed to corrupt the outcome of an athletic or sporting event.

(C)(1) Whoever violates division (A) of this section is guilty of cheating. Except as otherwise provided in this division, cheating is a misdemeanor of the first degree. If the potential gain from the cheating is five hundred dollars or more or if the offender previously has been convicted of any gambling offense or of any theft offense, as defined in section 2913.01 of the Revised Code, cheating is a felony of the fifth degree.

(2) Whoever violates division (B) of this section is guilty of corrupting sports. Corrupting sports is a felony of the fifth degree on a first offense and a felony of the fourth degree on each subsequent offense

§ 2915.07 Conducting illegal bingo.

(A) No person, except a charitable organization that has obtained a license pursuant to section 2915.08 of the Revised Code, shall conduct or advertise bingo. This division does not apply to a raffle that a charitable organization conducts or advertises.

(B) Whoever violates this section is guilty of conducting illegal bingo, a felony of the fourth degree.

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