Section 430.160  Restrictions and Limitations on the Conducting of Bingo

The following restrictions and limitations on the conducting of bingo apply to any bingo session conducted by any licensed organization.

a)         License

1)         No organization may conduct bingo without having in its possession a valid license issued by the Department.  No organization may continue to conduct bingo after the expiration date shown on its license unless the Department has received a substantially complete renewal application and the information required by subsections (b)(1)(A) and (B) of Section 430.110. An organization which violates the restriction in the preceding sentence, but which submits a substantially complete renewal application within 30 days after the expiration of its license, shall be penalized as provided in Section 430.l90(c)(2).  If the Department has received a substantially complete renewal application and accompanying information prior to the expiration of a regular license, but has not issued the renewed license as of the expiration date, the organization may continue to conduct bingo, and the organization's expired license shall continue in effect until the Department notifies the organization of the decision on the renewal application.  If the Department approves the renewal application, the date of issuance of the renewed license shall be the date following the expiration date of the expired license.  If the Department denies the renewal application, and the organization protests the Department's denial as provided in Section 430.190, the expired license shall continue in effect until the Department issues a final administrative decision on the protest, or until the protest is otherwise resolved.

2)         Every organization shall display its license in a prominent place in the area where it is to conduct bingo.  [230 ILCS 25/1(4)] A bingo session may be conducted in two or more separate areas on the premises for which the license is issued.  In such case the license shall be displayed in the area in which the person calling the numbers is located.

3)         No license will be issued for any bingo session beginning less than two hours after the conclusion of a prior session conducted on the same premises.  However, this restriction shall not apply to special permits or limited licenses to conduct bingo at the State Fair conducted by the Illinois Department of Agriculture pursuant to Section 5 of the State Fair Act [20 ILCS 210/5] or at any county fair as that term is defined in Section 2 of the Agricultural Fair Act [30 ILCS 120/2].

b)         Games.  A bingo "game" consists of the calling of numbers from one to seventy-five, one at a time without replacement, until one or more winners are determined by the completion of one or more predetermined patterns of numbers on a bingo card.

1)         An organization may not conduct more than 25 games during a bingo session, except organizations holding a special operator's permit or a limited license may, as one of the occasions allowed by such license or permit, conduct bingo for a maximum of 2 consecutive days, during each day of which the number of games may exceed 25.  Further, the 25 game restriction shall not apply to bingo conducted at the Illinois State Fair or any county fair held in Illinois.  The statutory monetary limit on the prizes is always applicable. A maximum of five games may be designated "special games".  Special games are distinguished from regular games only by the maximum price that may be charged for the bingo cards used. The five special games limit shall not apply to Bingo conducted at the Illinois State Fair or any county fair held in Illinois.

2)         Regular game cards may be sold for a maximum of one dollar apiece, and each regular card must be valid for all regular games in a bingo session.  However an organization holding a special operator's permit or a limited license may, on one of the occasions allowed by such license or permit, sell regular game cards which need not be valid for all regular games.  Special game cards may be sold for a maximum of 50 cents each.

3)         To be "valid" for a game, a card must be eligible for the same prize as any other card used in that game, except that cards sold for different prices may be eligible for different prizes, provided that the ratios of the prices and prizes are equal. (Example:  An organization sells regular cards for either one dollar or 50 cents.  The prize for a bingo on a one dollar card may be twice as large as the prize for a bingo on a 50 cent card.  Note:  This restriction does not apply in cases where the difference in the price of cards is due to a volume discount, e.g. one card for a dollar or six cards for five dollars.)

c)         Prizes

1)         The aggregate retail value of all prizes or merchandise awarded in any bingo session may not exceed $2,250, except that in any adjoining counties having 200,000 to 275,000 inhabitants each, and in counties which are adjacent to either of such adjoining counties and are adjacent to a total of not more than 2 counties in this State, and in any municipality having 2,500 or more inhabitants and within one mile of such adjoining and adjacent counties having less than 25,000 inhabitants, 2 additional bingo games may be conducted after the $2,250 limit has been reached. (Currently, Madison, Monroe and St. Clair counties, and the city of Red Bud, qualify for additional games.)  The prize awarded for any one game, including any game conducted after reaching the $2,250 limit, may not exceed $500 cash or its equivalent. [230 ILCS 25/2(4)]

2)         An organization holding a special operator's permit or a limited license may, as one of the two annual occasions allowed by such permit or license, award only noncash prizes for which there is no monetary retail value limit imposed, provided that the retail value of noncash prizes for any single game shall not exceed $150.  There is no minimum prize requirement.

3)         The aggregate retail value of all merchandise, cash, or bingo cards awarded in any bingo session as door or attendance prizes may not exceed $500, and shall be considered part of the applicable maximum limit in prizes or merchandise that may be awarded in any bingo session.  In games conducted pursuant to a special operator's permit or a limited license, and awarding only noncash prizes, the prize awarded for any one game may not exceed a retail value of $150.  There is no minimum prize requirement.

d)         Management and Operation of Bingo

1)         For periods through August 8, 2001, only a bona fide member of the licensed organization or a bona fide member of an auxiliary organization (substantially all of whose members are spouses of members of the sponsoring organization) may participate in the management or operation of the bingo session, either as an operator or a worker.  Participation in the management or operation of the bingo session includes selling cards, calling numbers, confirming and paying winners, and handling or counting the proceeds from the sale of cards while the session is in progress.

A)        Operators are the persons directly responsible for managing the game and who have signed the application for license or amended statement thereto.  No bingo session may be conducted unless an operator is present.

B)        Workers are any persons participating in the operation of a bingo session.  Their names must appear on the list of workers, or any amendments thereto, accompanying the organization's application, as provided in Section 430.110(b)(1)(B) and (b)(2)(B) and Section 430.120(b).

2)         No person may receive any remuneration or profit for participating in the management or operation of the game except that if an organization licensed under the Act is associated with a school or other educational institution, that school or institution may reduce tuition or fees for a designated pupil based on participation in the management or operation of the game by any member of the organization.  "Associated with" includes organizations which are organized and operated to promote the welfare of the school or educational institution (e.g., PTA or qualifying booster clubs).  The extent to which tuition and fees are reduced shall relate proportionately to the amount of time volunteered by the member, as determined by the school or other educational institution.  [230 ILCS 25/2(3)] Meals provided to operators or workers on the day they participate in the management or operation of a bingo game and an annual banquet or party for them do not constitute "remuneration or profit", provided that the per capita value of such meals or parties is not so great as to constitute a significant inducement to participate in the management or operation of the organization's bingo game.

3)         No person may participate in the management or operation of the bingo sessions of more than two licensed organizations.

e)         Illegal Gambling and Raffles

1)         Unlicensed raffles or other forms of gambling prohibited by law shall not be conducted on the premises where bingo is being conducted.  Illegal gambling includes, but is not limited to, gambling among those in attendance at the bingo session.

2)         Bona fide raffles, including the selling of chances and the determining of winners, licensed pursuant to the Raffles Act  [230 ILCS 15] may be conducted at bingo sessions.  (Note that raffle licenses are issued by the governing bodies of counties and municipalities; the Department does not license raffles.)  A "bona fide" raffle is defined as one in which, if the raffle is conducted entirely during a bingo session, the gross receipts from the sale of chances approximates the retail value of the prizes awarded, and the receipt or purchase of raffle chances or the determination of the raffle winners are in no way conditioned upon participation in the bingo session of any licensed organization, either as a player or as a worker.

3)         Pull tabs and jar games conducted under the Illinois Pull Tabs and Jar Games Act [230 ILCS 20] may be conducted.  Prizes awarded in these games shall not be included in the bingo prize limitation.

f)         Miscellaneous Provisions

1)         The entire net proceeds from bingo must be exclusively devoted to the lawful purposes of the licensed organization. [230 ILCS 25/2(1)]

2)         All advertising by a licensed organization regarding the conducting of its bingo sessions shall contain the name and bingo license number of the organization.  Licensed organizations may not participate in joint advertising with other licensed organizations.

3)         No admission fee may be charged for entrance onto premises on which bingo is to be conducted, nor may any minimum requirement be imposed as to the purchase of bingo cards.

4)         No person under the age of 18 years may play or participate in the conducting of bingo.  Any person under the age of 18 years may be within the area where bingo is being played only when accompanied by his or her parent or guardian. [230 ILCS 25/2(9)]

5)         No licensed organization shall purchase or lease any bingo supplies or equipment other than from a person or organization licensed under the Act.

6)         No licensee under the Act, while a bingo session is being conducted, shall knowingly permit the entry into any part of the premises by any person who has been convicted of a felony or a violation of Article 28 of the Criminal Code of 1961 [720 ILCS 5/Art. 28]. [230 ILCS 25/4]

(Source:  Amended at 26 Ill. Reg. 4941, effective March 15, 2002)