Illinois General Assembly - Full Text of Public Act 101-0597
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Public Act 101-0597


 

Public Act 0597 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY

  
  
  

 


 
Public Act 101-0597
 
SB0222 EnrolledLRB101 05070 TAE 50080 b

    AN ACT concerning business.
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
 
    Section 5. The Illinois Gambling Act is amended by changing
Sections 7.7 and 22 as follows:
 
    (230 ILCS 10/7.7)
    Sec. 7.7. Organization gaming licenses.
    (a) The Illinois Gaming Board shall award one organization
gaming license to each person or entity having operating
control of a racetrack that applies under Section 56 of the
Illinois Horse Racing Act of 1975, subject to the application
and eligibility requirements of this Section. Within 60 days
after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 101st
General Assembly, a person or entity having operating control
of a racetrack may submit an application for an organization
gaming license. The application shall be made on such forms as
provided by the Board and shall contain such information as the
Board prescribes, including, but not limited to, the identity
of any racetrack at which gaming will be conducted pursuant to
an organization gaming license, detailed information regarding
the ownership and management of the applicant, and detailed
personal information regarding the applicant. The application
shall specify the number of gaming positions the applicant
intends to use and the place where the organization gaming
facility will operate. A person who knowingly makes a false
statement on an application is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor.
    Each applicant shall disclose the identity of every person
or entity having a direct or indirect pecuniary interest
greater than 1% in any racetrack with respect to which the
license is sought. If the disclosed entity is a corporation,
the applicant shall disclose the names and addresses of all
officers, stockholders, and directors. If the disclosed entity
is a limited liability company, the applicant shall disclose
the names and addresses of all members and managers. If the
disclosed entity is a partnership, the applicant shall disclose
the names and addresses of all partners, both general and
limited. If the disclosed entity is a trust, the applicant
shall disclose the names and addresses of all beneficiaries.
    An application shall be filed and considered in accordance
with the rules of the Board. Each application for an
organization gaming license shall include a nonrefundable
application fee of $250,000. In addition, a nonrefundable fee
of $50,000 shall be paid at the time of filing to defray the
costs associated with background investigations conducted by
the Board. If the costs of the background investigation exceed
$50,000, the applicant shall pay the additional amount to the
Board within 7 days after a request by the Board. If the costs
of the investigation are less than $50,000, the applicant shall
receive a refund of the remaining amount. All information,
records, interviews, reports, statements, memoranda, or other
data supplied to or used by the Board in the course of this
review or investigation of an applicant for an organization
gaming license under this Act shall be privileged and strictly
confidential and shall be used only for the purpose of
evaluating an applicant for an organization gaming license or a
renewal. Such information, records, interviews, reports,
statements, memoranda, or other data shall not be admissible as
evidence nor discoverable in any action of any kind in any
court or before any tribunal, board, agency or person, except
for any action deemed necessary by the Board. The application
fee shall be deposited into the State Gaming Fund.
    Any applicant or key person, including the applicant's
owners, officers, directors (if a corporation), managers and
members (if a limited liability company), and partners (if a
partnership), for an organization gaming license shall have his
or her fingerprints submitted to the Department of State Police
in an electronic format that complies with the form and manner
for requesting and furnishing criminal history record
information as prescribed by the Department of State Police.
These fingerprints shall be checked against the Department of
State Police and Federal Bureau of Investigation criminal
history record databases now and hereafter filed, including,
but not limited to, civil, criminal, and latent fingerprint
databases. The Department of State Police shall charge
applicants a fee for conducting the criminal history records
check, which shall be deposited into the State Police Services
Fund and shall not exceed the actual cost of the records check.
The Department of State Police shall furnish, pursuant to
positive identification, records of Illinois criminal history
to the Department. Each applicant shall submit with his or her
application, on forms provided by the Board, a set of his or
her fingerprints. The Board shall charge each applicant a fee
set by the Department of State Police to defray the costs
associated with the search and classification of fingerprints
obtained by the Board with respect to the applicant's
application. This fee shall be paid into the State Police
Services Fund.
    (b) The Board shall determine within 120 days after
receiving an application for an organization gaming license
whether to grant an organization gaming license to the
applicant. If the Board does not make a determination within
that time period, then the Board shall give a written
explanation to the applicant as to why it has not reached a
determination and when it reasonably expects to make a
determination.
    The organization gaming licensee shall purchase up to the
amount of gaming positions authorized under this Act within 120
days after receiving its organization gaming license. If an
organization gaming licensee is prepared to purchase the gaming
positions, but is temporarily prohibited from doing so by order
of a court of competent jurisdiction or the Board, then the
120-day period is tolled until a resolution is reached.
    An organization gaming license shall authorize its holder
to conduct gaming under this Act at its racetracks on the same
days of the year and hours of the day that owners licenses are
allowed to operate under approval of the Board.
    An organization gaming license and any renewal of an
organization gaming license shall authorize gaming pursuant to
this Section for a period of 4 years. The fee for the issuance
or renewal of an organization gaming license shall be $250,000.
    All payments by licensees under this subsection (b) shall
be deposited into the Rebuild Illinois Projects Fund.
    (c) To be eligible to conduct gaming under this Section, a
person or entity having operating control of a racetrack must
(i) obtain an organization gaming license, (ii) hold an
organization license under the Illinois Horse Racing Act of
1975, (iii) hold an inter-track wagering license, (iv) pay an
initial fee of $30,000 per gaming position from organization
gaming licensees where gaming is conducted in Cook County and,
except as provided in subsection (c-5), $17,500 for
organization gaming licensees where gaming is conducted
outside of Cook County before beginning to conduct gaming plus
make the reconciliation payment required under subsection (k),
(v) conduct live racing in accordance with subsections (e-1),
(e-2), and (e-3) of Section 20 of the Illinois Horse Racing Act
of 1975, (vi) meet the requirements of subsection (a) of
Section 56 of the Illinois Horse Racing Act of 1975, (vii) for
organization licensees conducting standardbred race meetings,
keep backstretch barns and dormitories open and operational
year-round unless a lesser schedule is mutually agreed to by
the organization licensee and the horsemen association racing
at that organization licensee's race meeting, (viii) for
organization licensees conducting thoroughbred race meetings,
the organization licensee must maintain accident medical
expense liability insurance coverage of $1,000,000 for
jockeys, and (ix) meet all other requirements of this Act that
apply to owners licensees.
    An organization gaming licensee may enter into a joint
venture with a licensed owner to own, manage, conduct, or
otherwise operate the organization gaming licensee's
organization gaming facilities, unless the organization gaming
licensee has a parent company or other affiliated company that
is, directly or indirectly, wholly owned by a parent company
that is also licensed to conduct organization gaming, casino
gaming, or their equivalent in another state.
    All payments by licensees under this subsection (c) shall
be deposited into the Rebuild Illinois Projects Fund.
    (c-5) A person or entity having operating control of a
racetrack located in Madison County shall only pay the initial
fees specified in subsection (c) for 540 of the gaming
positions authorized under the license.
    (d) A person or entity is ineligible to receive an
organization gaming license if:
        (1) the person or entity has been convicted of a felony
    under the laws of this State, any other state, or the
    United States, including a conviction under the Racketeer
    Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act;
        (2) the person or entity has been convicted of any
    violation of Article 28 of the Criminal Code of 2012, or
    substantially similar laws of any other jurisdiction;
        (3) the person or entity has submitted an application
    for a license under this Act that contains false
    information;
        (4) the person is a member of the Board;
        (5) a person defined in (1), (2), (3), or (4) of this
    subsection (d) is an officer, director, or managerial
    employee of the entity;
        (6) the person or entity employs a person defined in
    (1), (2), (3), or (4) of this subsection (d) who
    participates in the management or operation of gambling
    operations authorized under this Act; or
        (7) a license of the person or entity issued under this
    Act or a license to own or operate gambling facilities in
    any other jurisdiction has been revoked.
    (e) The Board may approve gaming positions pursuant to an
organization gaming license statewide as provided in this
Section. The authority to operate gaming positions under this
Section shall be allocated as follows: up to 1,200 gaming
positions for any organization gaming licensee in Cook County
and up to 900 gaming positions for any organization gaming
licensee outside of Cook County.
    (f) Each applicant for an organization gaming license shall
specify in its application for licensure the number of gaming
positions it will operate, up to the applicable limitation set
forth in subsection (e) of this Section. Any unreserved gaming
positions that are not specified shall be forfeited and
retained by the Board. For the purposes of this subsection (f),
an organization gaming licensee that did not conduct live
racing in 2010 and is located within 3 miles of the Mississippi
River may reserve up to 900 positions and shall not be
penalized under this Section for not operating those positions
until it meets the requirements of subsection (e) of this
Section, but such licensee shall not request unreserved gaming
positions under this subsection (f) until its 900 positions are
all operational.
    Thereafter, the Board shall publish the number of
unreserved gaming positions and shall accept requests for
additional positions from any organization gaming licensee
that initially reserved all of the positions that were offered.
The Board shall allocate expeditiously the unreserved gaming
positions to requesting organization gaming licensees in a
manner that maximizes revenue to the State. The Board may
allocate any such unused gaming positions pursuant to an open
and competitive bidding process, as provided under Section 7.5
of this Act. This process shall continue until all unreserved
gaming positions have been purchased. All positions obtained
pursuant to this process and all positions the organization
gaming licensee specified it would operate in its application
must be in operation within 18 months after they were obtained
or the organization gaming licensee forfeits the right to
operate those positions, but is not entitled to a refund of any
fees paid. The Board may, after holding a public hearing, grant
extensions so long as the organization gaming licensee is
working in good faith to make the positions operational. The
extension may be for a period of 6 months. If, after the period
of the extension, the organization gaming licensee has not made
the positions operational, then another public hearing must be
held by the Board before it may grant another extension.
    Unreserved gaming positions retained from and allocated to
organization gaming licensees by the Board pursuant to this
subsection (f) shall not be allocated to owners licensees under
this Act.
    For the purpose of this subsection (f), the unreserved
gaming positions for each organization gaming licensee shall be
the applicable limitation set forth in subsection (e) of this
Section, less the number of reserved gaming positions by such
organization gaming licensee, and the total unreserved gaming
positions shall be the aggregate of the unreserved gaming
positions for all organization gaming licensees.
    (g) An organization gaming licensee is authorized to
conduct the following at a racetrack:
        (1) slot machine gambling;
        (2) video game of chance gambling;
        (3) gambling with electronic gambling games as defined
    in this Act or defined by the Illinois Gaming Board; and
        (4) table games.
    (h) Subject to the approval of the Illinois Gaming Board,
an organization gaming licensee may make modification or
additions to any existing buildings and structures to comply
with the requirements of this Act. The Illinois Gaming Board
shall make its decision after consulting with the Illinois
Racing Board. In no case, however, shall the Illinois Gaming
Board approve any modification or addition that alters the
grounds of the organization licensee such that the act of live
racing is an ancillary activity to gaming authorized under this
Section. Gaming authorized under this Section may take place in
existing structures where inter-track wagering is conducted at
the racetrack or a facility within 300 yards of the racetrack
in accordance with the provisions of this Act and the Illinois
Horse Racing Act of 1975.
    (i) An organization gaming licensee may conduct gaming at a
temporary facility pending the construction of a permanent
facility or the remodeling or relocation of an existing
facility to accommodate gaming participants for up to 24 months
after the temporary facility begins to conduct gaming
authorized under this Section. Upon request by an organization
gaming licensee and upon a showing of good cause by the
organization gaming licensee, the Board shall extend the period
during which the licensee may conduct gaming authorized under
this Section at a temporary facility by up to 12 months. The
Board shall make rules concerning the conduct of gaming
authorized under this Section from temporary facilities.
    The gaming authorized under this Section may take place in
existing structures where inter-track wagering is conducted at
the racetrack or a facility within 300 yards of the racetrack
in accordance with the provisions of this Act and the Illinois
Horse Racing Act of 1975.
    (i-5) Under no circumstances shall an organization gaming
licensee conduct gaming at any State or county fair.
    (j) The Illinois Gaming Board must adopt emergency rules in
accordance with Section 5-45 of the Illinois Administrative
Procedure Act as necessary to ensure compliance with the
provisions of this amendatory Act of the 101st General Assembly
concerning the conduct of gaming by an organization gaming
licensee. The adoption of emergency rules authorized by this
subsection (j) shall be deemed to be necessary for the public
interest, safety, and welfare.
    (k) Each organization gaming licensee who obtains gaming
positions must make a reconciliation payment 3 years after the
date the organization gaming licensee begins operating the
positions in an amount equal to 75% of the difference between
its adjusted gross receipts from gaming authorized under this
Section and amounts paid to its purse accounts pursuant to item
(1) of subsection (b) of Section 56 of the Illinois Horse
Racing Act of 1975 for the 12-month period for which such
difference was the largest, minus an amount equal to the
initial per position fee paid by the organization gaming
licensee. If this calculation results in a negative amount,
then the organization gaming licensee is not entitled to any
reimbursement of fees previously paid. This reconciliation
payment may be made in installments over a period of no more
than 2 years, subject to Board approval. Any installment
payments shall include an annual market interest rate as
determined by the Board.
    All payments by licensees under this subsection (k) shall
be deposited into the Rebuild Illinois Projects Fund.
    (l) As soon as practical after a request is made by the
Illinois Gaming Board, to minimize duplicate submissions by the
applicant, the Illinois Racing Board must provide information
on an applicant for an organization gaming license to the
Illinois Gaming Board.
(Source: P.A. 101-31, eff. 6-28-19.)
 
    (230 ILCS 10/22)  (from Ch. 120, par. 2422)
    Sec. 22. Criminal history record information. Whenever the
Board is authorized or required by law to consider some aspect
of criminal history record information for the purpose of
carrying out its statutory powers and responsibilities, the
Board shall, in the form and manner required by the Department
of State Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, cause
to be conducted a criminal history record investigation to
obtain any information currently or thereafter contained in the
files of the Department of State Police or the Federal Bureau
of Investigation, including, but not limited to, civil,
criminal, and latent fingerprint databases. Each applicant for
occupational licensing under Section 9 or key person as defined
by the Board in administrative rules shall submit his or her
fingerprints to the Department of State Police in the form and
manner prescribed by the Department of State Police. These
fingerprints shall be checked against the fingerprint records
now and hereafter filed in the Department of State Police and
Federal Bureau of Investigation criminal history records
databases, including, but not limited to, civil, criminal, and
latent fingerprint databases. The Department of State Police
shall charge a fee for conducting the criminal history records
check, which shall be deposited in the State Police Services
Fund and shall not exceed the actual cost of the records check.
The Department of State Police shall provide, on the Board's
request, information concerning any criminal charges, and
their disposition, currently or thereafter filed against any an
applicant, key person, for or holder of any an occupational
license or for determinations of suitability. Information
obtained as a result of an investigation under this Section
shall be used in determining eligibility for any an
occupational license under Section 9. Upon request and payment
of fees in conformance with the requirements of Section
2605-400 of the Department of State Police Law (20 ILCS
2605/2605-400), the Department of State Police is authorized to
furnish, pursuant to positive identification, such information
contained in State files as is necessary to fulfill the
request.
(Source: P.A. 93-418, eff. 1-1-04.)
 
    Section 10. The Sports Wagering Act is amended by changing
Section 25-20 and by adding Section 25-107 as follows:
 
    (230 ILCS 45/25-20)
    Sec. 25-20. Licenses required.
    (a) No person may engage in any activity in connection with
sports wagering in this State unless all necessary licenses
have been obtained in accordance with this Act and the rules of
the Board and the Department. The following licenses shall be
issued under this Act:
        (1) master sports wagering license;
        (2) occupational license;
        (3) supplier license;
        (4) management services provider license;
        (5) tier 2 official league data provider license; and
        (6) central system provider license.
    No person or entity may engage in a sports wagering
operation or activity without first obtaining the appropriate
license.
    (b) An applicant for a license issued under this Act shall
submit an application to the Board in the form the Board
requires. The applicant shall submit fingerprints for a
national criminal records check by the Department of State
Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The
fingerprints shall be furnished by the applicant's owners,
officers, and directors (if a corporation), managers and
members (if a limited liability company), and partners (if a
partnership). The fingerprints shall be accompanied by a signed
authorization for the release of information by the Federal
Bureau of Investigation. The Board may require additional
background checks on licensees when they apply for license
renewal, and an applicant convicted of a disqualifying offense
shall not be licensed.
    (c) Each master sports wagering licensee shall display the
license conspicuously in the licensee's place of business or
have the license available for inspection by an agent of the
Board or a law enforcement agency.
    (d) Each holder of an occupational license shall carry the
license and have some indicia of licensure prominently
displayed on his or her person when present in a gaming
facility licensed under this Act at all times, in accordance
with the rules of the Board.
    (e) Each person licensed under this Act shall give the
Board written notice within 30 days after a material change to
information provided in the licensee's application for a
license or renewal.
(Source: P.A. 101-31, eff. 6-28-19; revised 9-26-19.)
 
    (230 ILCS 45/25-107 new)
    Sec. 25-107. Applicability of the Illinois Gambling Act.
Insofar as a provision of the Sports Wagering Act is silent on
a provision, the Illinois Gambling Act, and all rules adopted
thereunder, shall apply to the Sports Wagering Act. If there is
a conflict between the Sports Wagering Act and the Illinois
Gambling Act, the Sports Wagering Act shall control.
 
    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
becoming law.

Effective Date: 12/6/2019